Total Drama: Dungeon Hunters
by Icathius Nytfall
Summary: Chris calls for 18 new individuals to compete for a grand prize of 1 million dollars. Contestants will be competing in virtual reality filled with deadly creatures while overcoming hard challenges. SYOC app is closed. 10/18 contestants remain.
1. SYOC app

An aerial view of a large compound in the middle of a dense forest came into scene. The place down below held a large oval shaped building with a light blue colored roof. On the right side of the building were nine wooden cabins all having the same charcoal colored roof. Adjacent to the cabins on the other side of the building was a large green camo tent swinging just slightly with the wind. Finally, placed in the middle of the three places was a camp site with a big fire pit in the middle along with eighteen wood stumps surrounding it.

Standing in the middle of the camp site was a single man standing by his lonesome. As the scene draws closer towards him, the man standing on his own was no other then the famous Chris Mclean sporting his trademark smile and usual outfit.

"Welcome to a brand new season of Total Drama!" Chris announced while spreading his arms dramatically. "For this season, we would be recruiting eighteen new victims, I mean contestants to compete for one million dollars." The host ended with a smirk.

"This time around the challenges would be held exclusively in this large building before your very eyes." He soon gestured towards the building right behind him. The face of the building was flat and rectangular showcasing only opaque glass doors.

"For this season, our contestants will be competing in virtual reality but with a little twist." He gave a short pause. "Our contestants will not only compete as themselves but also as avatars of their wildest imaginations!"

"You heard that right dear viewers, for this season it's all centered around our contestants running about in an RPG like setting battling it out with creatures only safe deep within our imagination." Chris soon gave off a sinister looking grin.

"Bonds will form, tears will drop, and blood shall be spilled, all for the sake of DRAMA." Chris said the last word with much more emphasis. "Now let the cast hunt, begin!" He soon gave a dramatic pose pointing forwards.

Author's note: Well, this will be my first attempt on making a Total Drama story. I'm just an amateur writer at best so I hope you guys will understand about my writing style. Also feel free to judge me about it through the reviews so that I may improve. Now, with that out of the way let me present the rules first:

-No Mary sues/Gary stus. This is very much self explanatory as to why.

-No God powers, Time manipulation, or instant kill abilities. Quite obvious as well.

-PM's only please. Having it in the reviews will only leave you guys at a disadvantage at most since your exposing your OC for anyone to plan around

-Give accurate descriptions and correct spelling. This will have an important impact later on in the app, I'll explain as to why once you get their.

-Title your PM's with TD: DH "OC's name" so that I could recognize it immediately. Also only a maximum of 2 OC's per person. New submission, new PM.

-Don't over complicate things, it would just make things harder for the both of us. Me especially.

-Lastly, so that I can know you read the rules add in at the bottom of the app my name; Icathius Nytfall

With the rules done, it's time for the app.

Name (First name, Last name):

Age (15-18 only):

Gender:

Stereotype:

Personality:

Appearance (Height, Hair color and design, Eye color, Skin color. You guys can add anything else here if you feel up to it):

Normal wear:

Sleepwear:

Formal wear:

Bio (At least one paragraph long):

Likes:

Dislikes:

Fear:

Audition tape:

Now for the important part, the RPG aspect of the app form. Meaning not only will you make an OC, your also making an OC for your OC. Basically the questions above this is your OC while the ones below are for their RPG versions for challenges and stuff.

Class (knight, rogue, mage, etc. You guys are not really limited here):

Class description:

*This is important so that I can have an accurate depiction. Because I just have this feeling that you guys will go all out with the class since I'm not limiting it*

Weapon of choice-

Primary: (one only, exemption to this is dual wielding)

Secondary: (one only, same exemptions if the primary isn't already dual wielding)

Skills/Abilities

Skill 1: (Name, Effect)

Skill 2: (Name, Effect)

Skill 3: (Name, Effect)

*note this is where the whole accurate description most especially applies. If you don't explain the skills effect properly I might accidentally interpret it as something else. So make sure to describe the effect properly so that I won't accidentally say your dash ability is a speed buff or something along those lines*

Armor/Outfit:

Main role (Fighter/Duelist, Tank, Back row, Support):

*For this part, make sure it makes sense with the class you chose. I don't want to see the cleric acting as a Duelist while the assassin is the support*

Merge class:

*This last part is for when your OC makes it pass merge. The only limit here is that it should be an up class version of the class your OC is. Think of it as they got promoted to a higher rank.*

Well that's all for the application form. I'll be adding in the accepted cast list once I chose half of the line up already. Anyways, good luck to all that are submitting.


	2. Final Cast Update

Accepted cast list

Male:

1\. Kazuo Hagiwara - XBloodLegendX

2\. Dylan Macartney - DarkSleeper

3\. Nathan Drake Carrot - PoisonousCarrot

4\. Clint Redmond - Kunnaki

5\. Leonard "Jag" Jagging - DarkJeneral

6\. Derek Wright - Kunnaki

7\. Blake Hervington - DarkSleeper

8\. Estwynn Paratus - DSX62415

9\. Tristan Kelly - TheSansMan

Females:

1\. Paris Alexander - Lessonaritalia

2\. Kali Dulal - POMForever

3\. Lucette Quetzal - JustTheClassicalGirl

4\. Phoebe Marietta Cartwright - XBloodLegendX

5\. Ginger De Marigny - Aleister Bloodrive IIV

6\. Alilessuodrovak "Alice Teague" - Scorpialin

7\. Gelsey - Friend 2

8\. Laren Brea - Paronda

9\. Janet Jordan - Cloak192

Well, here's the final update for the accepted cast. They all looked super interesting but portrayals would be on the more shakey side on my end so bare with for that part. I'll be posting the introduction plus part 1 of the first challenge in a few days. I would like to apologize to those who submitted but weren't accepted, if I was working with a bigger cast then maybe they would have made it in but since I'm still fairly new to writing TD stories I needed to use a much more manageable cast. Lastly, for this story I won't be adding in an OC for myself, you'll all see later on once the first challenge has been posted as to why. Okay with that out of the way it's time for some Chris...yay...

* * *

Chris was shown laying back on a chair behind a wooden desk with his feet raised up to the side. The room he was in was very dim for the blinds were near shut allowing sunlight to barely seep in. The desk he was basically lazing on placed multiple folders with various names written on each one. As the famed host was busy reading a folder in his hand, the door to his office suddenly flew open with loud crash causing him to fall over backwards.

"WOOAH!" Chris yelled as he fell over backwards sending papers flying with him. "What's the big deal here!" He yelled back angrily as he got up rubbing his sore back.

"Chris, more mail for ya." A familiar deep sounding voice came from outside the now open door. Stounding right outside the door was a silhouette of a tall muscular man whose face is barely visible. "And turn on the goddamn lights!" A muscular arm reached for the side and with a flick the lights were now on.

"Oh, it's just you Chef." Chris says while straightening his back. "I thought it was the cops again."

"The cops won't be bothering ya." Chef reassured. "Well, until the season ends that is."

"Gee...thanks for reminding me."

"No problem." Chef said sarcastically. "Anyways, here are more hopefuls wanting to join the show." Chef soon dropped onto Chris's desk a new stack of folders. "So, have you accepted anyone yet?"

"I've accepted a couple. They're right over their if you want to see them." Chris pointed towards another table off to his right. On top of it lay a box with the word 'Accepted' crudely written on it with red crayon. Chef just gave Chris a skeptical look to see if he was serious. "What? You expected blue."

Rolling his eyes, Chef approached the cardboard box and pulled out a folder from inside. After reading its contents he soon gave Chris a confused look as he looks up from the folder.

"I thought these sort of Powers weren't allowed?" Chef asked while eyeing Chris.

"Let me see." Chef soon handed Chris the folder with the page still opened. "Oh. Him. The producers were the one who hand chose him, because he isn't here as a contestant."

"What is he then?"

"Lets just say you'll be cooking up one less cookie for the first half of the season."


	3. Maze of Fortune Part 1: The Players

Chris stands by the front of a large metal gate with chain fencing spreading in opposite directions along the side of the road. Chris gave the camera a welcoming smile as it closes in on him. "Welcome dear viewers to the first official episode of Total Drama: Dungeon Hunters!" Chris soon gestured behind him. "Beyond this gate lies where our contestants will stay for the rest of the season." The camera soon pans towards the sides to reveal a massive forest just behind the fences. "We'll soon give you guys a detailed tour about the place but for now let's wait for our contestants. Oh, I think that's them right now."

Off into the distance was a yellow ordinary looking bus quickly approaching to where Chris was standing. As the bus stopped right in front of him, the doors soon slid open prompting a few foot steps to be heard from inside the bus.

"Welcome!" Chris announced as the first person got off the bus. The first person who got off the bus was a young girl who looked to be of average height as she walked up towards Chris smiling. She had long honey brown hair with pink colored tips and pink heart shaped pins at the ends. She wore a plain white tank top with a pink mini skirt to match. She stared at Chris with her blue eyes before speaking up.

"Hi Chris! It's a pleasure to meet you." The girl gave Chris a toothy grin before extending her right arm towards him palms open.

"Likewise." Chris replied shaking the girls hand. "You must be Lucette am I correct?"

"Yup, you sure are."

"Great. Now go stand over their while we wait for the others to come out." Lucette soon proceeded to stand by the front gate all the while humming to herself.

The next person to step off the bus was a tall boy, around near six feet in height, making his way towards Chris. He wore a white dress shirt underneath a blue dress jacket slightly opened with similar colored dress pants. His dark blue hair was flowing gently as it caught the wind causing some of his bangs to cover his face. He also appeared to be wearing rectangular shaped glasses over his black eyes.

"Welcome! You must be Clint? How are we doing today." Chris smiled. Clint just gave Chris a long look before heading towards where Lucette was standing. "Not much of a talker huh? Whatever."

"Heya! My names Lucette! What's yours?" Lucette introduced as she gave Clint a sweet smile. Clint however just ignored her and walked passed only to lean on the fence to mind his own business. "Okay..."

The next person to step off the bus was another boy only this time he was shorter than Clint, shorter than Lucette even. He wore a plain white t-shirt underneath a brown jacket barely zipped up. He also wore faded blue jeans that either looked like it has seen better days or was intentionally designed to look that way. He had neatly trimmed black hair in the style of a bob cut. Slung around his neck was a pair of red headphones seemingly attached to something in his right pocket.

"Derek I presume?" Chris motioned for a handshake but was aptly ignored by the young boy. Derek then walked towards where Clint was leaning up against and decided to stay their as well while listening to his music. Both boys didn't even bother to even look at each other. "Geez...rude much."

Another contestant soon hoped off of the bus only this time it was a girl. She wore a stripped red and white shirt underneath a grayish black hoodie with four diamond shaped buttons. She also wore a plain black short skirt with a leather belt outlined by a metal chain strapped to her waist. Her knee high socks were barely poking out of her knee length high heeled boots making her look a bit taller. The most eye catching thing about her was her ginger colored hair cut just above her shoulders framing her face perfectly for both of her ears and some parts of her freckled cheeks were covered up.

"Let me guess, you're Ginger aren't you." Chris said with a smirk as the girl approached. "I could tell mostly because of your hair."

"Well given that smug look of yours you must be Chris." Ginger countered. "I could tell based of off that." She snickered. Chris looking pretty much unamused by her statement just held back a bit for his right eye brow was already twitching.

"Go stand over their by the others." He motioned for her towards where the other three were standing. Lucette waved back at Ginger while the two boys just minded their own.

"Hmm interesting crowd. Good luck to those who gets to be in a team with those two." She pointed towards Derek and Clint before walking to where Lucette was standing.

"Hi! My names Lucette." Lucette introduced once more as she kept up her sweet smile.

"Nice to meet you. The names Ginger." Ginger said smiling back.

"Ginger...the name suits you." Lucette said sweetly.

"Umm thanks. Haven't heard a compliment in a while." Ginger replied almost blushing a bit.

As the two were busy conversing another contestant soon got off the bus. The person who got off the bus was a boy wearing a zipped up white and red jacket with brown pants a blue sneakers. He has chin length brownish black hair in which swayed gently as he walks up to greet Chris. Staring at the host with his light green eyes he paused for moment before continuing on with his greetings.

"Good day to you Chris. You look the same as ever." The boy greeted with a nod of his head.

"Ah, Kazuo. Nice to meet you as well." Chris replied. "So, you have anything to say about the current line up we have?" Chris gestured towards the other contestants. The two girls were having hearty conversion for they were notably giggling while the two guys just stood by their lonesome.

"Hmm I wonder what the butterfly effect has in store for us." Kazuo stated before heading towards where the other contestants were.

"Okay...good luck with that." Chris says as he trails Kazuo with his eyes. "Weirdo." He said once Kazuo was out of ear shot

As soon as Kazuo left a female contestant soon got off. She wore a long and brightly colored dress coupled with a pair of flat shoes. She had golden wavy hair that reached her mid back and crystal blue eyes. On top of her head lies a small silver tiara encrusted with a couple small jewels.

"Phoebe! Glad you could make it." Chris says smiling.

"Um, th-thanks Chris." Phoebe said meekly giving off a small smile. "S-so umm where are we s-staying exactly?" She asked while staring at the dense forest right behind the fences. Her face looking a bit terrified.

"Don't worry to much about it. Go stay by the others for now while we wait for the other contestants to arrive." Chris motioned for the doll faced girl towards the gate. As Phoebe cautiously approached the front gate, eyes still locked on to the forest, Kazuo soon took notice of her and gave of a sly grin as he had an idea. Walking up to meet her half way through, Kazuo soon spoke up.

"Hey their short stuff. The names Kazuo." He introduced a bit flirtatiously.

"Eeeek!" Phoebe backed off a bit. "Oh umm I-I'm sorry. I'm Phoebe."

"Okay, so tell me Phoebe, what's with the worried look?"

"Oh umm I-I'm worried that th-their m-might be a monster in their." Phoebe replied, her voice trembling a bit."

"Hmm I see." Kazuo nodded. "Well, I hope we could get along real well." He winked.

While the two were talking another male contestant got off the bus and looked to be having an argument with Chris. The guy was much more powerfully built and taller than Chris was along with having ash-blond hair and sideburns. He wore a simple black t-shirt with a red demonic face printed in the middle and faded jeans with silver-and-black tennis shoes. Hanging from his right shoulder was his black leather hooded jacket. His dark blue-green eyes were staring down at Chris the entire time.

"What do you mean give up my knife? If I'm going to survive here I'm going to need it." He said assertively. His voice was loud enough for the others to hear.

"Listen Leonard, It's for safety purposes and besides you will all have better weapons during the challenges anyways." Chris argued back with his arms crossed. Leonard, still glaring at Chris, soon took notice of the others staring at him. Giving up with his stand, he soon reached inside of his pocket and fished out a flip knife.

"Fine. You better return it to me once were done here." Leonard handed Chris the knife. "Oh and by the way, I go by Jag."

"Don't worry, I don't like keeping memorabilia's that are not me." He pocketed the knife. "Now go wait by the others." Leonard soon went towards where the others were standing.

"Move it kid." Leonard said as he walked in-between Phoebe and Kazuo.

"Eeep." She shrieked slightly as she backed off shakenly. The other contestants also took notice as they eyed him down. Whispers started going around as Leonard stopped to stand by Clint, who was also staring at him as he approached.

"Hmm what's wrong with him?" Lucette whispered to Ginger.

"I don't know but I would suggest staying away from him for now." Ginger whispered back.

"Agreed."

"Hmm what if he brought a gun instead of a knife." Kazuo pondered. Phoebe hearing his statement just started shuddering in fear at the thought of their being a gun. Kazuo taking notice just let out a small chuckle. "Don't worry, I doubt he's that extreme."

As all the commotion died down another male contestant got of the bus. He wore a gray shirt underneath a pitch black jacket with red outlines, regular jeans and hiking boots. His black hair had textured spikes with white as snow tips. Though his hair was eye catching, what the others paid more attention to was his eyes, one eye being pure white with a black pupil while the other was the reverse being pitch black and a white pupil. His porcelain white skin almost gleaming as he walked under the sun's rays.

"Everyone, meet Nathan." Chris announced for everyone to hear. Nathan just gave everyone a shy smile and a wave before proceeding to wait by the others, albeit farther away.

"So, what's with the interesting get up? You don't even look or act edgy." Ginger teased. "Oh and the names Ginger." She says extending her hand forward for a shake. Nathan just backed up slightly in response.

"No thanks." Nathan says with his hands up defensively.

"What? Are you a germaphobe or something? Don't worry I'm clean." Ginger ended with a grin

"Oh no, it's just that I'm not really fond of physical contact is all." Nathan replied a bit apologetically. "Now please, I rather be alone for a while."

"Okay." Ginger says as she returns to Lucette's side. "Man, what is up with the guys being loners." She says to Lucette once she was out of ear shot.

"Well, not all guys. Look at those two getting along." Lucette pointed towards Kazuo and Phoebe chatting. The Later though looking a bit terrified with one hand covering her mouth while the former was silently laughing to himself.

"Yeah, I guess so."

The next person to step of the bus was a girl of medium height and ivory skin. She wore a bright red Lolita dress with both the hem of her skirt and wrists were ruffled. Her long reddish brown hair reached the end of her back and tips slightly curled. Her olive green eyes scanned around the crowd as she gave everyone a soft smile.

"Everyone, this is Paris. She's a famous ballet dancer from Poland." Chris introduced. Paris just gave everyone a courteous bow.

"It's a pleasure to meet you all." She says while bowing. "I hope we would all get along very well."

"Okay princess, go stand over their by the others. We're still waiting for a few more contestants." Chris pointed her towards the front gate in which she obliged.

"Will do." Paris soon moved towards where the others were. As she approached the other contestants she soon noticed one of the guys still eyeing her. "What? You like what you see." Paris teased as she approached Leonard

"Don't get your hopes up." He said dismissively with his arms crossed. "Now go away, I hate small talk."

"We'll see." Paris replied before breaking away from Leonard and proceeding to stand underneath the shade of the front gate just behind Leonard. Everyone else just kept their eyes on her all the while.

"Man, she's really playing with fire." Kazuo said to Phoebe as his eyes were still locked on Paris. "Hmm I wonder if their interaction will have an effect later on." He soon gave off another sly grin. "Yeah...maybe that would happen."

"Um, Ka-Kazuo...p-please tell me you're not having a-any unpleasant th-thoughts." Phoebe says looking a bit shaken as she caught Kazuo's malicious look. Kazuo chuckled slightly as he petted Phoebe's head.

"Oh little Phoebe, I wonder how you would act if I didn't talk to you first." He continues to mess with her golden hair. Phoebe just gave him a terrified look.

After a while the next contestant that got of the bus was a fairly tall male with pale skin. He wore a red shirt with black splotches, blue cargo shorts, and white and red nike shoes. His blonde hair was swept to the right side of his face to give him that semi-emo look. His piercing chestnut brown eyes scanned the current crowd as he had a mischievous look on his face.

"I wonder who would be my potential victim hehehe" He silently laughed to himself. As he scanned around the contestants he soon looked towards Lucette giving her a wicked smile. "Perfect hehe." As he was about to approach the two girls Chris soon stopped him by grabbing him on the shoulder.

"Hold it Blake." Chris says as he pulled Blake back. "I suggest you save whatever it is you're planning for later."

"Heh. Fine. Gives me more time to plan my pranks out." Blake soon pulled his shoulder free from Chris' grasp. As he freed himself he continued on to stand by waiting with the rest of the contestants, not bothering to even strike up a conversation with anyone.

The moment blake left a female contestant got off the bus which caught almost everyone's attention due to her glowing white skin. She wore a black sleeveless top with a plain white cardigan over it and black pants. She's shorter than most of the female contestants but what made her stood out the most was her perfectly white hair with ash highlights matching with her skin.

"Hi everyone!" She exclaimed happily while bearing a huge grin.

"Hmm I like this girl. She looks fun to be around." Paris said to no one in particular. "You agree?" She looked towards Leonard.

"No." Leonard replied without even bothering to look back.

"This here is Laren. You could say she's a ball of positivity." Chris said looking a bit disgusted.

"Hey their Chris. I bet this season would be great!" Laren exclaimed.

"Let's see how long your positivity will last." Chris laughed sadistically. Laren just tilted her head slightly with a confused look.

The next contestant to step of the bus was the complete opposite to Laren. She wore a navy blue plaid button-down shirt with sleeves rolled up to her elbows and a white thin-strapped tank top underneath. She also wore dark washed tattered jeans with a couple small tears on both her thighs and knees and has flat hi tops on as well. Her hair is black and reached up to her mid back with her bangs slightly cut just above her brows. She had a much more intimidating aura in comparison to Laren's more Positive one.

"Hi! My names Laren!" She beamed with excitement. "What's yours?" The girl just gave Laren a cold stare with her deep green eyes as if signaling for her to back off. Laren, completely oblivious, just stood their smiling with her head tilted a bit. "So, what is it?"

The girl finally spoke up. "Fuck off already." She said plainly before brushing passed her. Laren, still quite interested with her, just followed her. "Go away, shoo." Alice said as she took notice. Laren just stared at her cutely with a small smile. Letting out a sigh Alice just continued to head on towards the other contestants with Laren following.

"Well, the potty mouth you all just witnessed is Alissa..Alilisasa...uhh..Alisalis...Alilessudrovak!" Chris said finally. "Man that was hard to pronounce. I wouldn't be surprised if I somehow butchered it. Anyways, she'll also go by Alice if anyone is interested." As both Alice and Laren cut through the contestants, Paris decided to tease Leonard once more when both of them passed by.

"So Leonard, is she your type? You both look edgy and have matching green eyes." She snickered. Leonard just looked back and gave her a sharp glare promptly making her raise her hands up in surrender. "Oh c'mon, lighten up. I was just teasing you."

The next one to get of the bus was another male contestant who looked to be about six feet tall. He wore a long sleeved blue undershirt underneath an unbuttoned black polo, Black cargo pants, and black combat boots. He has near shoulder length black hair with his bangs barely covering his crimson red eyes. He looked like to be the easy going type of person for he was much more laid back and looked much more calmer then the other contestants

"Meet Dylan everyone, our much more hardcore gamer." Chris said with a smirk as he eyed Clint. Clint didn't give much of a response for he just stared at the newcomer.

"Oh Chris, you flatter me. It's not like I'm consistently in the top ten ranking of ALL online games." Dylan bosted heavily. Everyone didn't give him much thought except for Clint who gave him a long look. Dylan catching Clint's gaze just gave the guy a smirk.

"What's this? Do I sense a rivalry brewing up already?" Chris says with a grin. "The challenges haven't even started and yet bloodlust is already in the air."

"Blood isn't the only thing I'm lusting for." Dylan stated calmly before making his way to stand to where Clint was, all the while eyeing each other as he approached.

"Don't let your arrows lose to quickly." Clint finally spoke up. "Unless you're ready to pick up your knife"

"Don't you worry about that, for I always hit my mark." Dylan boldly replied. Clint just let out a small smile as if accepting a challenge.

The next contestant to step of the bus was a girl of average height with long black hair that reached down to her back and curves around her face. Her skin was lightly tanned and has brown colored eyes to match. She wore a purple blouse underneath a black cardigan with plain jeans and black shoes. Like Dylan, she looked a lot calmer then the others for she had a small smile looked at everyone with an easy gaze as she neared the the others.

"Hello, everyone. I hope we have a memorable time together." She said in a soft even voice.

"Welcome, Janet." Chris smiled at the girl. "Go stand by the others while we wait for the remaining contestants."

"Will do, Chris." Janet soon made her way to stand with the others just behind where Ginger and Lucette were. Lucette and Ginger taking notice, they soon introduced themselves

"Hi! My name's Lucette." Lucette introduced herself with a smile.

"And my name's Ginger." Ginger introduced herself as well. "Janet right?"

"Yup, pleased to meet the two of you." She said smiling.

"So, any guys you currently like here?" Lucette suddenly asked.

"Umm, isn't that a bit to sudden? I mean we haven't even properly met the others yet." Janet replied trying to dodge the question.

"Still though, they say that the first impressions will leave the biggest mark." Lucette remarked. "So who is it?"

"If that's the case then wouldn't that mean you're leaving a bad impression for acting a bit to rash." Ginger teased as she turned Lucette's words against her.

"Oh c'mon, it's not like you didn't answer it when I asked you the same question a while ago." Lucette said grinning as if she pulled out a trump card on her.

"I-I was just merely humoring you is all." Ginger replied looking a bit flustered. Janet just silently laughed at the two.

While the trio were having their fun another female contestant got off the bus. The girl was short in stature with dark brown hair tied into a French braid with light brown skin and hazel colored eyes. She wore a gray long sleeved shirt with the words "Seize the Day" printed in bold across her chest, skinny jeans, and gray high-tops. Strapped to her waist looked to be a green colored hoodie and a green knitted cap on her head.

Some noticeable features about her was her near heart shaped face and slightly pointed ears.

"Hi." The girl waved. "I'm so glad to be here." She smiled.

"We'll see if you would still feel the same once we get started." Chris laughed sadistically. Kali just gave Chris a confused look in which Chris just waved his hand dismissively. "Never mind about the details. Welcome to the show either way, Kali."

"Umm...thanks." Kali replied looking a bit skeptical.

"Now move out of the way, we still have..." Chris trailed off as he counted the contestants that were already out. "Three more contestants to go." Kali soon started moving towards where the other contestants are. As Kali was walking, she soon took notice of Dylan who was eyeing her with an intrigued look. When she approached Dylan soon spoke up.

"I didn't know we had an elf within our ranks." Dylan said while slightly laughing. Clint just rolled his eyes while shaking his head.

"Don't worry, I can assure you I'm human." Kali replied softly.

"Well that's sad, we could have gotten a skilled archer or swordsman." Dylan slightly pouted. Clint just gave an amused grin hidden from the two.

"Hmph, we'll see." Clint said from under his breath.

"AAAH!" Phoebe suddenly screamed. As everyone looked to where Phoebe was afraid off they all soon were taken aback to what they saw as well.

The thing Phoebe got scared by was the next contestant who was a tall intimidating looking man for everyone fell silent the moment they noticed him. He has long black hair tied into a pony-tail with tan colored skin. He wore a black t-shirt with blue overalls and black sneakers but what made everyone feel uneasy was the black eye-patch on his right eye. His only good eye was a clean shade of silver which made him look even more intimidating. As the guy had a worried look on his face for nearly everyone looked to fear him, Chris soon spoke up.

"Everyone, before any of you say anything, I did not accept an ex-convict." Chris defended. "His name is Tristan and he's just as friendly." Chris rolled his eyes, clearly wishing that Tristan was a convict.

"Yeah, I'm sorry if I scared any of you guys." Tristan apologized. "I didn't intend for this to be my first impression but theirs really nothing much I could do."

"Explain yourself later, we still have two more to go." Chris soon gestured for Tristan to stay by the front gate.

"Okay." Tristan replied before making his way towards the others. As Tristan was passing by Phoebe and Kazuo, Kazuo soon took notice of Phoebe's shaken disposition as she was looking straight at Tristan. With a curious look, Kazuo soon called over Tristan.

"Hey Tristan! Why not spend time with us for a while?" Kazuo called out. Hearing Kazuo's call Tristan decided to walk up to them. With a shaken look, Phoebe just hid behind Kazuo as Tristan was approaching.

"Umm are you sure you want me to be here?" Tristan asked as he took notice of Phoebe. "She doesn't look comfortable around me."

"Oh don't worry about her." Kazuo waved him off dismissively. "She's just nervous to meet people is all. Isn't that right Phoebe?" Phoebe just cautiously peeked her head from behind Kazuo.

"Hi their." Tristan said in a friendly tone with the warmest smile he could manage.

"H-hi.." Phoebe replied sheepishly. Kazuo just chuckled slightly from the outcome he got.

"Well anyways, my name's Kazuo." He finally introduced. "I hope things go smoothly for us once the challenges start."

"Likewise." Tristan nodded.

"Here comes our last male contestant!" Chris announced. And like he said, another male contestant soon got off the bus. He was about above average with cream-colored skin and was fairly skinny. He wore a blue and red buttoned up shirt, tan cargo shorts, and black-and-grey checkered patterned skate shoes. He has dark-brown hair in a corporate cut and oval rimmed glasses covering his hazel eyes.

"Everyone, this here is Estwynn. Our neighborhood weab." Chris smirked.

"Hey! I'm not a weab, I don't even look like one." Estwynn said abruptly to defend himself. "Just because I placed in my app that I like Japanese heroes that doesn't make me a weab automatically."

"Whatever weab, go and wait by the others." Chris kept up his smirk. Glaring back at Chris, Estwynn soon stormed off with his arms crossed.

"Maybe I will." Estwynn said before walking away from Chris. Estwynn just stood next to Nathan who just gave him a shy smile. Estwynn taking notice just slightly nodded his head at him.

"Okay, time for our final contestant!" Chris exclaimed but no one came. "I said it's time for our final contestant." Chris repeated himself but was to no avail. "Hold on." He said before entering the bus. After a few seconds of waiting, Chris soon got of the bus dragging a girl with long brown hair with him. With her and Chris now out of the bus, the bus soon drove off.

"Okay, okay. You didn't need to drag me out ya'know?" The girls said with both her hands on her hips. She wore a thin blue dress with a long skirt, White stockings, and white doll shoes. She was just barely above five feet and looked to be younger then she appears to be.

"Well you took to long and I didn't want to drag this on longer then it should be." Chris said with his arms crossed. "Now go stand by the front gate with everyone else, Gelsey." Chris pointed towards the gate.

"Ugh, whatever. This is totally killing my mood." Gelsey soon marched towards the front gate and stood right next to Paris. Paris just smiled and waved before speaking up.

"Hi, my names Paris." She introduced with a smile.

"My names Gelsey. Nice to meet you." Gelsey smiled back.

"Everyone, may I have your attention!" Chris announced as he was already by the front gate. Everyone looked towards him. "Now since all of you are finally here, I think it's about time we get this show on the road." He soon turned around and the gates automatically opened up. As Chris went through, everyone followed in as well with some of them looking around the dense forest surrounding them.

Leonard, Paris, Gelsey, and Derek were at the front of the group with the two girls busy talking to each other as they walked.

"Interesting place to set up todays season." Gelsey said as she looked around. Paris just nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, I wonder who would be our teammates though?" Paris pondered.

"As long as no one gets in my way I don't care who they are since I would be carrying them all the way." Leonard said defiantly. Derek just shrugged in response.

"Bold statement." Blake said from behind them. "But remember, everyone here would be getting powers and weapons. It's not like you'll be the only capable one here."

"Shut your mouth kid, otherwise I might pummel you down first." Leonard glared while cracking his knuckles.

"We'll see about that hehe."

Alice, Laren, Phoebe, and Kazuo brought up the rear of the group with everyone else were in the middle.

"Ooooh, this place looks interesting." Laren said completely amazed by the scenery. "Don't you aggree Alice?" She smiled.

"Stop talking to me." Alice replied with her eyebrows crossed.

"Eeeep." Phoebe jumped a bit as she herd a twig break. Kazuo seeing Phoebe's reaction couldn't help but laugh a bit.

"Man, you sure are afraid of every little thing aren't you?" Kazuo asked while grinning.

"I t-try n-not to be." Phoebe replied meekly.

Chris soon stopped right in front of large camp site with a big fire pit in the middle. Further ahead of them was the giant oval shaped building where the challenges would take place.

"Everyone, this campsite here is where all the eliminations will take place and inside that building over their is where all the challenges would be held." Chris explained as he held his arms out dramatically. "Over to my right, you would see where you all would be staying for the rest of season." He gestured towards the nine seperate wood cabins. Ginger suddenly raised her hand.

"Wait, their are only nine cabins and theirs eighteen of us, wouldn't that mean one cabin will have one boy and one girl?" She asked looking a bit skeptical with the set-up. Chris just waved his hand dismissively

"I'll explain how it will work out later, for now their are a few more things I need to explain." Said Chris in response. "Now, to my left is where all your food will be served." Chris gestured towards a huge green tent in where Chef was standing right outside giving them all a salute. Most of the contestants just groaned in response. "Okay, now follow me everyone for the last bit of our tour so that the first challenge can finally begin." Chris soon lead them inside the massive building.

As they all approached the building, Chris soon pressed a button on the side of the building causing the double-doors to slide open. When they all got in most of them were amazed to what they all saw. Inside was a very spacious room with multiple neon lights flashing inside. At the very end of the room lay a control panel with many blinking lights and above it was a massive flat screen. Placed on each wall were nine human sized pods all with green lights signifying that no one was inside. The contestants were all already awe struck with some already roaming around the place.

"Wow...are we seriously going to use all this!" Laren exclaimed excitedly as she was frantically pacing around the room.

"Damn, I did not expect such a killer set up such as this." Dylan said clearly impressed. "This so beats my triple-monitor PC set up at home." He boasted a bit.

"Hmm I wonder what sort of machinery is running this place?" Tristan said quite intrigued by everything he saw.

"Everyone, can I have your attention?" Chris announced suddenly as he was standing by the control panel. "It's time we start the first challenge that will decide what you will be on. Here are the mechanics." Chris pressed a blinking blue button on the panel. The large screen soon turned on to reveal an aerial view of a massive maze surrounded by a dense forest. "The area shown in this screen is where the challenge will take place. Each of you will enter a pod each and will be spawned just outside of the maze scattered around the forest. Your job is to make your way to the front entrance of this maze before we could start. Once their, you will enter by pairs to find three colored gems; red, blue, and yellow." The screen flashed three shiny gemstones. "Take note that each gem is generated at random so their is a good chance that your partner will also be your future teammate. Any questions?" Phoebe raised her hand.

"A-are their g-going to be a-any monsters in their?" Phoebe reluctantly asked.

"Good question, Phoebe." Chris answered with a grin before pressing on another button. The screen soon flashed nine different silhouettes of unrecognizable creatures. "These monsters on screen will serve as the guardian of sorts protecting the gemstone. Only one will spawn per pair to make things a bit more interesting."

"Are we supposed to kill them?" Clint asked from the middle of the group as he was analyzing each creature.

"The depends on you guys if you want to kill them or not." Chris answered. "I generally don't care how you finish this challenge to be honest."

"Are their going to be any eliminations after this challenge?" Kali asked from behind everyone else.

"For the sake of this challenge their isn't going to be one. So no need to worry yourselves about that for now." Chris answered as well. Various whisperings started happening. "Any more questions?" No one raised their hand. "Good, now onto the pairings, also to make thing quick, your pair is also your cabin partner." Some of the contestants just groaned in response.

"Okay, the pairs are as follows." Chris pressed a green button on the panel to reveal each pairing. "Leonard and Phoebe." Chris named each one.

Leonard just gave a skeptical look while Phoebe just shook in fear.

"Kazuo and Nathan."

Kazuo and Nathan just gave each other a nod.

"Derek and Janet."

Janet tried to wave at Derek but the later just ignored her

"Ginger and Lucette."

Both of them just high-fived each other while sporting huge grins

"Alice and Laren."

Laren just jumped in joy, Alice on the other hand wasn't too fond of her partner

"Paris and Blake."

Both just looked at each other not giving the other much thought.

"Dylan and Clint."

The former gave of a smirk while the later nodded

"Kali and Gelsey."

Both girls just gave the other a sweet smile

"And lastly, Estwynn and Tristan."

They both shook the others hand.

"Now, get in the pods now so that we can begin." Each contestant got into a pod with some of them entering in the pod next to their partner in hopes that they would spawn together. As each one them entered their pods, the glass panes closed in on them locking them in.

While inside, a complex helmet with tubes and blinking lights was soon lowered onto their heads with all of them having the sudden urge to sleep. As the last contestant succumbed to the sleepy sensation the large monitor soon showed an aerial view of where the contestants were all waking up with surprised looks on each of their faces.

Chris, still standing by the control panel, turned to face the camera bearing a huge grin. "Well, their you have it folks at home. Our eighteen contestants now have stepped into virtual reality to determine which team they will belong in."

On screen shows Leonard and Ginger arguing about where to go while Phoebe was cowering right behind Ginger. Another scene soon flashed to reveal Blake and Paris walking side-by-side in a different part of the forest. One last scene was shown with Derek walking on his own. All of the contestants that were shown all wore a multitude of different outfits and armor far different from the ones they came with along with bearing an assortment of weapons.

"Will they be able to make it to the maze? Will they ever survive what the maze has in store for them? And Clint prove that he's the ultimate gamer? Find out next time on...Total...Drama...Dungeon Hunters!" Chris exclaimed with both his arms raised.

* * *

 **Authors note: Well, here you go, the first official chapter of Total Drama: Dungeon Hunters. I hope you all liked my portrayals of your OC/s, if not well tell me through PMs on where I should improve upon. Also for those who missed my update on the cast list I would like to apologize once again for not accepting them. Also lastly I would be leaving a question in the end of every chapter for all of you who submitted to answer. I'll be doing this so that I can know how each of your OCs would react to certain things I'm going to add later on during the story.**

 **Okay, onto the question: If a bonus challenge were to be given that your OC can take on at any point during the contest that would grant them an instant pass to get into merge at the cost of being eliminated instantly upon failure, will they take the risk? Send me you answers through PM. Well anyways, until next time. Icathius, out.**


	4. MoF 2: Dragons, Nagas,and Chocobos

"Previously on Total Drama: Dungeon Hunters." Chris started with huge grin as the camera focuses on him. "We finally got to meet our contestants that would be participating for this season." An aerial scene was shown with the contestants gathering around the front gate. "Last time when we left off, our eighteen contestants all got in these individual pods to finally step in virtual reality for the first time to begin their first challenge that would determine their teams. But, before that can happen our contestants must first traverse through a thick forest undenounced to them is filled with deadly creatures to reach a place called 'The Maze of Fortune'." He chuckled slightly. "Who would make it out of the forest first? What teams would each contestant be placed in? And would Blake finally be able to pull of one of his pranks? Find out now on...Total...Drama...Dungeon Hunters!" Chris opened up his arms in a dramatic fashion.

~(Theme Song)~ (quick A/N: still working on it...)

The scene showed to where Kali, Dylan, and Kazuo were. Kali was wearing a dark red tunic, red fingerless gloves, black shorts, a black hooded coat, and knee high boots. As for armour she wore a simple leather breast plate, pauldrons, and one silver metal bracer on her left arm and silver gauntlet with intricate flower carvings on her right arm with a long silver blade in place on where her fingers should be. Strapped on her belt was a large sheathed knife curving inwards.

"So...where do you think the maze is?" Kali asked to no one in particular. Standing beside Kali was Kazuo who was busy reading a purple coloured book with magic seals imprinted on the cover. He wore a long green-and-blue coloured rob with golden sandals. Strapped onto his back was a golden sceptre with prismatic jewel on the top.

"I don't know but what intrigued me the most is on how I could understand what's written on this book." Kazuo said while keeping his eyes on his book.

"Really? Let me take a look." Dylan asked from behind the two. Dylan wore a dark-blue bat winged helm with the face mask opened, thick plated chest piece and shoulder guards, metal leggings and grieves with spikes protruding from his knee caps. On both of his arms were metallic gauntlets that reached up to his elbows that looked to be made out of charred steel. Sheathed on his back was steel long sword with detailed carvings on the hilt.

As Kazuo gave Dylan his book, the later just gave him a confused look on how Kazuo was able to read such writings. "Dude...how on earth are you able to read this chicken scratch?" Dylan asked as he tried to make sense from what he was reading.

"From what I could tell, It looked to be runic text. I don't know when or how I learned it though." Kazuo pouted.

"Well-" Dylan was soon cut off when they all heard loud rustling coming from the thick bushes across from them. "Well whatever it is...I hope you know how to use that thing as well." Dylan soon unsheathed his sword and assumed a battle stance. Kali soon followed as she raised her arm-blade up.

On the other side of the forest was Phoebe, Ginger, and Leonard. Ginger was shown to be triumphantly marching through the dense forest with Phoebe beside her as Leonard was trailing behind with a scowl on his face.

Ginger wore a black-and-red coloured suit with metallic shoulder plating and various buckles on her arms and forearms. She also wore an opened black vest, black fingerless gloves, black pants with the right leg having three buckles and the left having the words 'future' printed in golden kanji running down her leg, and red leather shoes with metallic tips. Strapped to both her hips were two high calibre white pistols all having energy blades at the bottom of each barrel.

"Ugh, I really can't believe I lost to you." Said Leonard with his arms crossed. Leonard wore a complete set of black leather armour with golden swirls all over. On top of his head was a leather helm with golden horns and two diagonal slits. Strapped to his back is a double tipped naginata with the pole coloured in deep red and blades a bright silver. Strapped onto both his sides were dual axe knives with razor sharp edges.

"Not my fault my combos are far superior to your brutal assaults." Ginger gave Leonard a side grin. "So much for being the 'beefy' tank of the group." She snickered. Leonard just gave her glare in which scared Phoebe rather than Ginger.

"P-please stop f-fighting, w-we need to work t-together if we want to make it out of here s-safely." Phoebe said with her voice trembling. She wore a light yellow lacy dress with brown high boots. Around her neck was a platinum necklace with a sapphire crystal. The weapon she was having a hard time carrying is a platinum sceptre ending with spear point while bearing a red ruby jewel.

"And why did I get to be paired up with a complete cry baby to begin with? Not to mention you're also my roommate." Leonard said while glaring at Phoebe causing her to stick closer to Ginger even more.

"Hey! Stop threatening Phoebe or otherwise you'll get another taste of my MagiGuns." Ginger threatened. Leonard wasn't phased at all.

The scene soon shifted to a different part of the forest where Blake and Paris where. The two were just silently walking together with Blake leading the way. Blake was wearing a dark green rangers hood with a face mask, light padded armour and leather leggings, along with metal boots. Slung around his back was a wooden bow that seemed to pulsate in a feint light and two short swords strapped to each thigh.

Paris on the other hand wore a much more...lucrative outfit. She only wore a bright red satin bra and a long white lacy skirt with sequencing that gleamed every step she took. Strapped to her right hip was a silver rapier in a well detailed sheath. As the two walked in one direction for a while, Blake suddenly spoke up to break the silence.

"So umm what's with the revealing get up?" Blake asked without even bothering to look back. His face was in a slight shade of red.

"I'm a dancer, I need to be as light as possible." She shrugged. "And besides, all you guys are ogling at me anyways, might as well use it to my advantage." She gave off a sly grin.

"Yeah but-, hey! That's not true." Blake said a bit flustered. Paris just laughed at the prankster's reaction. "We'll see if you'll still be laughing once I'm done with you." He mumbled to himself from under his breath.

"What was that?" Paris asked as she still has a grin on her face.

"Nothing." Blake just smirked.

The scene shifted for the last time to different portion of the forest where Lucette, Estwynn, and Clint was. They were all shown to be running away from something with horrid looks on some of their faces. Clint, who was behind the group, suddenly turned around to fire an arrow before resuming his escape.

"Stay back!" Clint yelled as he let loose an arrow. Clint wore a complete set of dark brown leather armour coupled with leather boots, a brown belt and fingerless gloves. He also wore an opened dark green robe with the hood up and quiver full of arrows strapped under it. His bow was made from dark oak wood and strapped sideways on his lower back was a long dagger in a leather sheath.

The thing Clint shot at was a lion looking creature with razor sharp fangs, huge bat-like wings and a long scorpion tail. Clint landed a direct hit on the beast's chest which was of no use and only made the beast angrier. The beast let loose a mighty roar before leaping up onto the air and taking flight.

"AAAAAH! That thing is gaining on us!" Lucette yelled as she looked back towards the creature. Lucette's new outfit was an off-shoulder dress with a green silk belt who's skirt reached just above her knees, a pair of white bow shoes, and her hair raised into a high bun. The weapons she has were a silver bow strapped across her back and she carried along with her a white staff with a circular frame on the top which held an emerald green jewel.

"Clint! Shoot it down or something!" Estwynn yelled as he was far in-front of the them. Estwynn wore a black body suit with a green colored padded chest piece and cuffs. On top of his head is a silver helm with a tinted green face mask with silver lining to mark out where his eyes were. On his back was an emerald green cape which flowed in the wind as he ran. In his hands he held a single bowgun which he tried desperately to reload.

"What do you think I'm doing?!" Clint readied another arrow and fired, only this time the shot missed it's mark. He made a 'tsk' sound before reaching for another arrow. "Why don't you two do something?" He yelled in a much angrier tone.

"I'm trying!" Estwynn yelled back as he finally reloaded his bowgun. "Finally!" He yelled before letting lose a volley of silver bolts at the beast. Each bolt flew passed the creature with one managing to tear through a small portion of the beast's right wing. The beast however, wasn't affected at all by the attack and ended up diving towards them with it's fangs and razor sharp claws on the ready.

"That's it! Phase shift!" Estwynn yelled from the top of his lungs. His suit and armor soon underwent into a series of transformations. The green parts of his armor turned a bright yellow with the shoulder pieces now in the shape of rectangles. His weapon transformed into a dual sided battle axe. "Take this!" He swung his weapon at the beast as it nears.

With a loud roar, the beast was soon sent flying towards the trees as Estwynn's attack was strong enough to actually shove it aside. His axe was covered with the blood of the beast with a small puddle of it was forming onto the ground. Panting heavily, Estwynn soon let loose on the tight grip on his axe before relaxing himself.

"Whew...that was close." Estwynn let out a deep breath. "Man, so this is what it feels like to be a Kamen Rider!" His voice sounded a bit more excited though no one could his face due to his mask.

"Kamen what?" Lucette asked with a confused look.

"You know, Kamen riders. It was a show aired a long time ago that that involved people wearing various suits of armor and weapons in order to stop an impending evil." Estwynn tried to explain. Lucette however still didn't understand what it was.

"Just think Power rangers but not as popular." Clint stated bluntly.

"Oh, okay. Yeah, being a power ranger sure is exciting." She now said smiling. Estwynn, though not obvious due to his mask, was furrowing his brow due to the connection Clint made.

"Hey! Kamen rider is far from-." Estwynn was soon cut off when a bright flash of light suddenly appeared from where the creature landed. "What was that?" Estwynn said with a not so obvious worried look.

"I don't know, but whatever it is I don't think we should get close to it." Lucette replied as she backed of with a worried look.

"What if it was treasure? I mean we are in an RPG basically." Estwynn reasoned. "What about you Clint? Got any ideas?" Clint, with an intrigued look on his face, had an idea for held his hand out with his palm faced up.

Focusing carefully, Clint let out deep breath as particles of energy gathered in the center of the palm of his hand forming a small spherical shape. As the sphere grew bigger in Clint's hand he soon closed it letting loose the power he had gathered to form a magic sigil on the ground in-front of him. After a few seconds of silence the sigil soon started glowing in a bright green light as figure was started materialize rom the sigil. After a few seconds had passed the figure soon formed itself into a silver wolf as the bright light died down.

"Interesting." Clint said with a small grin.

"Cooool." Lucette said completely amazed from what she had wittnessed.

"Wait, you mean to tell me you had the ability to summon a wolf all this time? Why didn't you use it earlier!" Estwynn's voice was much higher denoting that he was a bit pissed at Clint. Clint however just gave the boy a sharp stare before looking back towards the wolf.

"Hmm should I or should I not give you a name?" Clint pondered as he tapped his chin.

"What about silver? I mean he does have bright silver fur." Lucette tried to pet the wolf but pre-emptively pulled back when the wolf turned to look at her with it's bright yellow eyes.

"Hmm, Silver, go fetch whatever the beast left behind." Clint commanded while pointing towards the bushes. Without any hesitations, the wolf now named Silver dove into the thick brush while making rustling sounds as it searched. After a few seconds had passed the wolf came out of the bushes carrying a small dagger in it's mouth with a thick white blade and a lion's head on the bottom end of the handle. "Interesting." Clint said as he grabbed the dagger from Silver's mouth.

"Congratulations Clint!" Chris's voice was suddenly heard from out of nowhere. "You have obtained the Fang of the Manticore! This weapon can pierce through any light to medium armor with ease but has little to no durability so use it wisely." He was last heard laughing sadistically.

"Wow, good job Clint!" Lucette exclaimed with both her arms raised. Estwynn though wasn't as amused as she was.

"Interesting, this might prove useful later on." Clint soon strapped it onto his belt.

"Ugh, let's go already. I don't want to be here any longer." Estwynn crossed his arms as he walked deeper into the forest. Clint and Lucette all soon followed afterwards.

Back to a different portion of the forest, the scene switched back to where Kali, Dylan, and Kazuo where, only this time they were fighting off against an army of goblin looking creatures. The three of them all stood in a circle in order to cover each others backs.

"Take this!" Dylan yelled as he mowed down three goblins in one swing. Their blood scattering all over the grass as their bodies fell with a thump before disappearing. "Man, out of all the places we could have spawned in it just had to be next to a goblin encampment." He cut down another pair of goblins. Dylan's long sword was heavily coated in blood.

"Hah!" Kali jabbed two goblins at the same time, skewering them both. "I don't know about you but..." She trailed off as she sliced down another. "But this is the most fun I had in a long time." A goblin suddenly pounced on her but was suddenly blasted away by a pillar of water. "Nice save." She said grinning towards Kazuo.

"Heh, no problem." He replied. "Hmm I wonder what would've happened if I allowed it to get a bit closer." Kazuo thought to himself. Three goblins, all carrying poorly made spears this time, were soon charging towards Kazuo. "Hmm what odd weapons." He said before casting another spell from his book. As Kazuo closed the book, it soon started glowing white light causing crystalline spikes to erupt from the ground impaling each goblin.

After a few minutes of them continuously slaughtering the goblin army, the last one was finally struck down and no other goblin came out of the trees or bushes. Dylan, completely exhausted, drove the tip of his sword on the ground before leaning on it. Kali and Kazuo on the other hand weren't exhausted at all from the whole ordeal.

"Man *pant* that was *pant* rough." Dylan said in-between breaths. "How come you two aren't winded?" Dylan soon fixed himself

"I normally chop down on thick pieces of wood with an old axe back home so cutting down these goblins weren't much of a problem for me" Kali explained.

"I just held back to be honest." Kazuo shrugged. Both Kali and Dylan gave Kazuo widened eyed looks. "What? I just wanted to know what would be the outcome of the butterfly effect." He stated almost nonchalantly.

"I hope this is the last time I'll be on a team with you." Dylan picked up his sword. "Come on." Dylan lead the way with Kali following. Kazuo, the last one to leave, soon noticed a bright glow from where they all stood. As he turned, he saw in-front of him was a blood red sword with a black handle and hilt laying on a pool of blood

"Congratulations Kazuo!" Chris's voice was heard only by him. "You've earned the Blood sword! This weapon will drain the energy of anything it pierces through as long as you remain connected, however, the blade can't penetrate through any armor besides cloth or thick hides." Chris ended.

"Hmm interesting." Kazuo picked up the sword. Hiding the sword in his robe, he soon ran off towards where Dylan and Kali went.

The scene soon shifted back to where Blake and Paris were. The two were shown walking along the riverside not bothering to talk to each other when a loud rustling came from the bushes beside them.

"Who goes their!" Blake yelled as he readied both of his short swords. Paris just reached for her silver rapier not yet pulling it out. As the rustling got louder and louder, Nathan soon popped up from the bushes on his own.

"Oh, hi." Nathan waved at the two. Nathan wore a long black robe with red outlines and dark red star on his back. Underneath the long robe were his dark blue jeans and red hiking boots. He wore on his hands dark brown gloves with brass knuckles. Strapped to his shoulder and across his chest and back was a leather sheath with a katana inside while he carried dual chain sickles both having metallic silver blades.

"Oh, it's just you Nathan." Blake returned his short swords and Paris dropped her guard stance. "So, are you the only one here or are you with someone else?"

"Well I was with Derek but he suddenly left me on my own." Nathan replied.

"Did you catch what direction he went off to though?" Paris was the one asking this time around.

"Nope." Nathan shook his head. "I just went into a direction where I thought he might have went."

"Want to come along with us?" Blake offered. "We won't mind. And besides, it beats roaming around this huge forest alone."

"Yeah, for once he's right. Who knows what creatures might be lurking around." Paris added. Nathan thinking about for while soon just nodded his head.

"Okay." He replied. "Oh, and I found this after defeating a huge snake thing." Nathan pulled out a golden ring from one his various pockets. The ring had a snakes head on it with red ruby's for eyes "I heard Chris's voice and told me that it was called the viper's ring or something. It has an effect where the wearers movements become near silent but with the draw back being my first attack on a target would be non-lethal." He explained. "You two can have it, I'm an Assassin so having this would just be a waste on me."

"I'll have it." Paris quickly snatched the ring from Nathan's hand. Blake just gave Paris a skeptical look. "What? My job would be healing you guys up anyways." Paris put on the ring. "Let's see if it works." As Paris took her step, no sound was heard when she stepped on to the patch of grass. Feeling quite excited, Paris started doing a couple of ballet moves to test it out even more and as expected each of her steps were barely audible.

"Huh, it does work. Great." Blake rolled his eyes and looked away for a bit. "Let's go already, for all we know we might be the last ones their." He failed to notice that the other two had already left. "Oh c'mon!" He yelled before running along the river. His voice echoed throughout the forest.

"W-what was th-that?" Phoebe faintly heard from their side of the forest. She looked around as if desperate to find the answer.

"Probably just the wind, Phoebe." Ginger replied in a soft voice trying to reassure her.

"O-okay, I guess..." Phoebe was still feeling a bit tensed. Leonard, still behind the two, was minding his own when he suddenly saw something from the corner of his eye.

"Guys hold up, I think I saw something." Leonard paused as he raised up his Naginata. The two girls hearing him stopped in their tracks and turned to look towards him.

"If you're trying to scare Phoebe, I suggest you cut it out." Ginger crossed her arms. Phoebe just stood behind her.

"No, I'm being serious. Look!" Leonard had a serious look on his face as he pointed towards the trees with his Naginata. Ginger, trusting Leonard for now, decided to look towards where Leonard was pointing at. After a few seconds of waiting nothing popped up. Ginger, now fed up with Leonard, just let out a sigh before turning.

"And I thought Phoebe was the paranoid one." Ginger's back now facing Leonard. "C'mon, let's hurry up before he completely loses it." She soon lead Phoebe with her.

"I swear, I definitely saw something." Leonard withdrew his Naginata. As the trio left a shadowy figure soon stepped out from behind a tree focusing intently on Leonard with it's light blue eyes. When they were now out of sight the figure soon vanished.

As they continue on with their walk out of the forest, a large grey stone wall was now in sight of them. Feeling a bit excited, Ginger hastened her pace all the while dragging Phoebe along with her and Leonard trying to catch up. When they finally made it through they were now in a large open area with the maze right in front of them. Looking around, they saw Tristan, Derek, and Chris were right their.

Derek wore a white gi reaching half way down his thighs, white colored pants, Steel gauntlets on both arms, and was bare foot. Strapped around his waist was a black colored belt and hanging from it was a wooden flail. Tristan though had a much more major change. Tristan now wore a mechanized body armor for the upper half of his body while his lower half was still his normal overalls. The upper back portion of Tristan's armor was slightly raised up while having two closed panels where the shoulder blades were. He also gained a fully mechanized right arm and his black eye patch gained a gear pattern colored in silver. He carried with him a pipe wrench and silver machete strapped to his waist.

"Glad the three of you had made it." Chris smiled as he saw the trio approached. Chris still wore his regular outfit.

"Is anyone else here yet?" Ginger asked.

"Yeah, both Alice and Laren are here as well. They just started their challenge not to long ago for they were the first pair to get here." Tristan explained to them.

"So that means me and Phoebe are next in line huh." Leonard stared at Phoebe. Phoebe just took in a big gulp.

"That's right." Chris nodded. "Once the two find their gems the two of you will go in next." He explained. "Also theirs a confessional outhouse right behind the trees over their if you want to use it or something." Chris pointed towards its direction.

"Good to know." Ginger replied.

(Confessional)

Alice (before entering the maze): Ugh, why did it have to be Laren of all people? I would have gladly chosen that paranoid girl over her! At least she would be quiet *sighs* the only good thing about this is that she's obviously a support based on her get up. I just hope we don't end up on the same team.

Tristan: The only issue I see right now is that they might vote me out first, I mean have you seen their reaction when I got of the bus? I can't blame them but I just have to win in order to get that prize money.

Ginger: I seriously don't like that Leonard guy. His cocky attitude reminds me of a certain someone that I'm not going to name *grits teeth*.

Leonard: Man, like what I said before, why do I get to babysit that cry baby anyways? I swear she's going to be the first one that's going to be voted off.

(End Confessionals)

Deep inside the large maze was Alice and Laren as they try to navigate their way through. The walls of the maze were so high up that the interior is near pitch black in most parts even though the maze had no roof. Alice, leading the way, just kept to the right side of the maze in order to navigate them through. She was near invisible while in the maze due to her get up but Laren was still able to track her perfectly.

Alice wore skin tight black leather armor with white trimmings scattered across her body, Steel-toed boots, and gloves. She had on her head a black hood and cowl draping over her forehead and the bottom portion of her face leaving only her eyes visible. Wrapped around her neck was a long grey scarf and on her back was a quiver full of arrows all having black feathers. She carried with her a large bow colored deep black with the bow-string a reflective silver with an arrow already notched. Her secondary weapon was a large dragon-claw dagger strapped to her right shoulder.

Laren, trailing from behind, wore a blue-and-white long dress with a cape made out of glowing white and gold fire that didn't seem to burn her whatsoever or leave any smoke trails behind. Strapped around her neck is a golden laced amulet with a prismatic jewel that seemed to faintly glow in red a red light. As they were about to round another corner, Alice soon made a sudden stop and signaled for Laren to crouch down.

"What is it?" Laren said telepathically to Alice as she tried to peek over her shoulder.

"I think I found our gems." Alice whispered back.

"Really? Where?" Laren's telepathic voice suddenly got louder

"Ouch, tone it down will you! I'm still not yet used to this whole telepathy thing you have going for you." Alice scolded in a hushed tone.

"I'm sorry." Laren's telepathic voice toned down a bit. "Anyways, where are they? Can't see anything."

"Over their, in the far back." Alice pointed towards a pedestal with the top half covered in the shadows. Laren was about to turn the corner when Alice pulled her back. "Don't! Look." Alice pointed towards the shadows. Looking careful now, Laren was soon able to make out a faint silhouette of a creature staying by the shadows and looked to be laying down low.

"Are you sure does are it though? It could be one of Chris's many traps." Laren speculated.

"It could be but I'm not so sure. We might as well check to make sure." Alice soon stood up. "Stay here, I'll go see for myself." Laren nodded. Alice, taking in a deep breath, focused on herself carefully before entering in a mode of stealth masking her from the creature. As she sprinted as fast and as silent as she could, she soon reached the pedestal without disturbing the creature. Quickly feeling around the top of the pedestal she soon felt two cold circular stones and quickly snatched them both.

"You got it! Now hurry on back." Laren gestured for her to comeback. Pocketing both items, Alice now stealthfuly tried to make her way back to Laren. Meanwhile, outside the maze, Chris and the others were watching them from a holographic screen just above the main entrance. Everyone was watching carefully, including now Paris, Blake, and Nathan, except for Chris who had a bored expression on.

"This is so boring to watch." Chris yawned. "Let's spice things up." Chris pulled out a holographic panel from out of nowhere and pressed a button on it which caused the whole maze to start shaking. Due to the sudden shaking, the creature on scene soon took notice of Alice who was disrupted out of her stealth. "Perfect."

"Shit!" Alice yelled as she ran fast away from the creature. The creature letting out a loud roar soon gave chase to Alice and was gaining on her quick. The thing that was giving chase to Alice was a large muscular bull-like creature with large horns. Each of the creatures strides sounded like cracking thunder for how powerful and loud it sounded. As Alice ran as fast as she could, she could already feel the bulls hot breath for it was already on her tail. Laren, reaching forward, soon was able to grab hold of Alice and pull her back around the corner and into safety but they both tumbled down in the process. The bull failing to notice charged head first into a the wall opposite from where they stood causing it to crumble down and crush the beast.

"Are you hurt anywhere or anything." Laren had a worried look on her as she inspected her friend for any injury

"Nah, I'm fine...just a bit winded is all." Alice replied as she dusted herself off. "Somethings off though, I'm not sure but I feel like it was controlled or something." Laren just tilted her head. "What I mean is, if it really was a trap then wouldn't it have been triggered the moment I grabbed the gems."

"I don't know, must've been a delayed trigger or something?" Laren thought, unknown to them that Chris manually set it off. "Anyways, did you see what colors they were?"

"No, not yet. It was to dark for me to see properly. I immediately stashed it in my pockets." Alice soon brought out the two orbs from her pocket. She soon walked towards where sunlight was seeping in through only to reveal both gems were red.

"Yay! Were still teammates!" Laren jumped in joy as she saw the color of the gems. Alice just let out a deep sigh and shook her head before giving the gem to Laren.

"Fuck this day..." Alice mumbled to herself. "C'mon, let's head on back." Alice and Laren soon went back to maze entrance through the same path they took.

"Congratulations Alice and Laren!" Chris greeted both of them as they got out. "The two of you are now the first official members of the Red Dragons!" He said with a grin.

"Well, It's our turn now." Leonard got up from a sitting position. Phoebe just stumbled a bit before getting up as well. The two of them were about to enter the maze when Chris suddenly stopped them.

"The two of you are not going to enter through here." Chris stopped the two. "Their are nine different entrances through this maze with unique interiors all having different guardians. The two of you will enter through this one." Chris pressed another button on the holographic panel. As he pressed it, the ground started shaking and the maze started to spin around. After a few seconds the maze stopped turning to reveal another entrance. "The two of you will be entering the Maiden's Den." Chris grinned. Inside the maze were a couple lit torches leading deeper inside.

The doll faced girl just trembled in fear for how ominous the inside looked. Leonard, staring down at her, just placed a hand on her shoulder before entering in first.

"J-Jag, w-wait up!" Phoebe walked in after him. The two of them were now out of sight of everyone else.

(Confessionals)

Phoebe: I-I hope I can make it th-through this first challenge. And h-hope that Jag isn't as s-scary as he makes himself out to be *gulps*

Alice: Hmm after seeing Chris was able to do that to the maze I just have this feeling that he setted up the entire thing to happen. I'll just keep it for myself until I could make certain of it.

Laren: Whoopee! Not only is Alice my roommate but she's also my teammate! I just hope that Phoebe person would be on my team as well because she looks so cute and adorable.

(End Confessional)

"Paris. Blake. The two of you are next once they're done. Got it?" Chris said to the both of them. The duo just nodded. After Leonard and Phoebe got inside, Kazuo, Kali, and Dylan came out from around the corner of the maze.

"Greetings everyone." Kazuo greeted as he saw everybody else.

"Their you guys are! We were curious as to why no one was hear yet." Dylan said with a grin. "When we saw the maze move we immediately went towards the opposite direction of the spin."

"Well it's a good thing the three of you are now here. Since after Blake and Paris finish their challenge both Kazuo and Nathan will go in next." Chris explained to them.

"So, has anyone gotten their teams yet?" Kali asked. Chris just nodded and pointed towards Alice and Laren. The later looking to be excited while the former didn't look amused at all.

"Judging by their looks, it seems the two of them are on the same team." Kazuo speculated.

"Yup, you sure are." Chris confirmed.

Deep inside now the poorly lit maze, Leonard and Phoebe were slowly making their way through with the former leading them. The two of them just walked in a straight path and peaking through every pathway for anything suspicious. As they were passing by each potential pathway, they soon happened upon a pathway without a single torch at all. Leonard, with suspicion in his eyes, decided to pick up one of the nearby torches and entered the pathway.

"Umm, J-Jag...a-are you s-sure this is the right way to g-go?" Phoebe's voice trembled as she stuck close to Leonard. Leonard just gave Phoebe a once-over before speaking up.

"You have any other ideas?" Leonard raised a brow at her. Phoebe just fearfully shook her head. "Good. I suggest you to listen to me on this one."

As the duo continued on with their search, turning through corners here and their, they soon came to a stop when they noticed a red velvet door just beyond one of the pathways. When Leonard tried to approach, a sense of uneasiness started to wrack him as a cold feeling blew through his body. As he fell over on to his knees with his left hand on the wall next to him, a melodious call soon echoed through the pathway.

"J-Jag!" Phoebe crouched down next to him with a worried look on her face.

"Oh Leonard~." A feminine voice called out to him. Leonard, hearing the voice, raised his head up to face the door as the voice sounded all to familiar to him. "Why don't you come and play with me for a bit~." The voice giggled.

"Wh-who's their?" Phoebe looked all around her.

"Jamina..." Leonard uttered silently to himself. Leonard soon got on his feet and walked slowly towards the door as if he was under a spell. Phoebe, both confused and terrified, called out to him.

"L-Leonard! Snap out of it!" Phoebe cried out. Leonard however was to entranced to care or notice. As the voice called for Leonard to get closer, it soon started to sound more and more distorted with each of Leonard's step.

"Yes my dear Leonard, come closer and join me in my room." The voice sounding more ominous now. When Leonard was already by the front of the door, the door suddenly opened in-wards and quickly pulled him, making him drop his torch, before closing shut.

"Leonard! Leonard!" Phoebe started pounding on the door to which no respond came.

Inside the room Leonard was in was faintly lit by a few velvet candles scattered around the place. Their was nothing inside of the room other than a simple queen sized bed that was oddly well kept and tidy. Barely visible on top of the bed was a female figure with pale skin wearing the most sultriest outfit barely covering up her parts. The figure had straight blood red hair, deep blue eyes, and protruding fangs.

"Yes Leonard, come and play with me." The figure laughed sadistically as Leonard approached. Leonard just kept mouthing the name 'Jamina' over and over again as he approached. When Leonard was now by the foot of the bed, the figure soon sat up to reveal large bat-wings on her back. On both her wrists were two bracers having one colored gem each; one blue and one yellow. Leonard now by the woman's side, she soon stood up and wrapped her slender arms around him. "Succumb to your demise hehehe." She whispered as she lowered her lips on to the boy's neck.

As the vampire was about to sink her fangs deep into Leonard's neck, the door locking them in soon got busted down and in came a human sized porcelain figurine holding a large Platinum lance. Came in next was another porcelain figurine only this time it was more feminine in figure and held a golden violin in it's hand. Once the other figurine was in, it soon started playing it's instrument sending in electric pulses towards the vampire, shocking her and making her lose her grip on Leonard.

"Wh-what?" Leonard said, feeling a bit disoriented. As Leonard came to his senses he soon realized he was inside the dark room with the vampire right in front of him. "Who are you and what did you do to me!" He yelled assertively as he drew out his Naginata. The vampire suddenly disappeared.

"L-Leonard! Are y-you okay?" Phoebe came rushing in through the broken doorway.

"Yeah, what happened though?" Leonard asked as he scanned around the dim room.

"Y-you suddenly j-just started walking t-towards the door and got s-sucked in." Phoebe explained as best as she could. "Y-you suddenly said the name 'Jamina' a-as well when I g-got next to you."

"Wait, that? I-" Leonard was suddenly cut off a when a cold breeze soon started filling the air.

"Tsk, if only you hadn't disrupted me this would have been over quickly." The same voice echoed in the room. As the two looked around in confusion, the vampire suddenly appeared once more, this time behind Phoebe. "Got you, you little runt." She suddenly wrapped her left arm and wings around Phoebe.

"Sav-*mumble*." Phoebe was cut off when the vampire covered her mouth with her free hand.

"That's enough of you." The vampire said manically. "Let's finish you off first."

"Hey! Let go of her!" Leonard charged but was suddenly pushed back and pinned against the wall. "Grr I'll kill you!" He roared as he tried to move.

"Say good night little girl." The vampire soon lowered her fangs to Phoebe's neck. As she was about to bite into the girl's neck, the vampire suddenly stopped when she felt a sharp pain on her side. As she looked to her side she could now see the male doll was right beside her, driving his lance through her wing and side. "H-how..." She said weakly as she dropped Phoebe and Leonard.

"*cough* N-now Leonard!" Phoebe said weekly from the ground. Leonard, taking his chance, started to charge up all the strength he could muster and in almost a blink of an eye he dashed across the room and drove his Naginata through her chest and out came the blade through her back.

The vampire, dropping to her knees, slid out of Leonard's blade and fell to the ground causing a pool of blood to form around her. After a few seconds had passed her body suddenly disappeared only leaving behind the two bracers.

"I-is it o-over?" Phoebe said weakly as she got up. Leonard, helping her get up, wrapped his muscular arm around Phoebe's waist to provide support.

"Yeah, it's over." Replied Leonard as he helped Phoebe get up. "And uhh thanks for saving me *clears throat*. You did well kid." Phoebe just gave Leonard a weak smile.

"Hey, that d-demon dropped s-something." Phoebe pointed towards the two bracers. Leonard picking both up inspected the two items.

"Hmm these must be our gems." Leonard gave Phoebe the blue bracer. "You can have that one, it matches your necklace anyway. Now let's get out of here before more of her comes along." The two soon started heading back to the entrance. After a while of slow walking they both managed to make it out safely. Also now outside the maze was Janet as well who was just sitting on top of a large rock.

Janet wore a black chest piece with a long armored skirt, her arms, legs, and torso were all covered with purple leather armor. She had on black colored greaves and black metal gauntlets. Leaning next to her is a long spear and strapped to her waist were two daggers.

"Congratulations Leonard and Phoebe!" Chris smiled at them both. "Phoebe, your are the first member of the Blue Nagas." He looked towards Leonard. "And you Leonard, you are the first official member of the Yellow Chocobos." He smirked. Leonard just gave Chris a long look.

"You know, if it wasn't for the whole ordeal a while ago I would have been pissed but I'm to withdrawn to care right now." Leonard just brushed passed Chris with Phoebe following.

"Okay..." Chris just eyed the two. "Time for the next pair. Paris and Blake, you two are next." The aforementioned got up from where they were seated and stood right in front of the entrance. "For your challenge it would be..." Chris trailed off as he pressed on the panel once more. "The Dragoon's nest." The maze soon stopped it's spin. The inside looked to be a dense forest like setting with mossy walls and grassy pathways.

"Great. Another forest." Blake said with a tired tone. "Oh well, let's go." The two went inside their maze.

"Oh right, forgot to mention something." Chris stated once the two were out of view. "I forgot that each gem is also an item that gives it's holder a small boost." Chris looked towards Alice and Laren. "The two of you hold the gem of courage. As long as you have it the two of you will gain a small strength boost." The two nodded. "And you two." Chris faced Phoebe and Leonard who were sitting under a tree with Ginger. "The two of you hold the bracers of serenity and might. The blue one, serenity, revitalizes the holder's energy much more quickly while the yellow one, might, gives it's holder's an endurance boost." They nodded as well.

(Confessionals)

Leonard: Well that's a downer *sighs* I got saved by that little girl and I was supposed to be the one carrying this. Don't you all worry, I'll make sure that it won't happen again

(End of Confessionals)

Inside the foresty maze Blake and Paris were blindly walking through each path taking random turns and corners trying their best to avoid all the low hanging vines and protruding roots. While the two were busy walking around blindly, Paris decided to start up a conversation to pass the time.

"So Blake...what team do you think you'll be part in?" Paris asked to break the silence.

"As long as it's not with you I don't care if I get placed in the yellow chocobos." Blake stated plainly.

"Chocobos? What are those anyways? Some sort of chocolate brand or something?" Paris tapped her chin. Blake just shook his head and let out a sigh.

"No, a chocobo is a derpy looking ostrich thing. It serves no purpose other than providing transport." Blake explained to Paris while keeping his eyes straight on the path. Blake easily avoided a low hanging vine right in front of him. "Watch out." He held the vine for Paris.

"Thanks." Paris said as she passed through. "Anyways, if that's the case then yellow chocobos is perfect for Leonard."

"How come?"

"He did say he say he was going to carry his team." Paris let out a small grin. Blake just chuckled slightly

"And theirs the punch line." Blake side while grinning. "Well let's hope we don't get into too much trouble. Dragoons are basically velociraptors except they breath fire."

"Yikes." Paris replied. As they continue on with their search, taking more twists and turns, they soon found themselves in a huge open clearing with a gigantic tree in the middle. When they scanned the area they soon were able to spot something glimmering from a high hanging branch. "Is that it?" Paris asked as she looked up towards it.

"Maybe." Blake replied.

"How are we going to get it though?"

"I got it." Blake unwrapped his bow from his back and pulled back the string.

"Umm you have no arrows?" Paris asked looking a bit confused. Blake, letting out a smirk, materialized an arrow that appeared to be already notched on to the bow. "I see, so that's your skill huh."

"Just you wait." Blake soon fired his arrow. As the arrow was flying it soon ignited itself in flames just before hitting the tree branch and burning it. After a couple seconds the branch started to drop down from it's height and landing with a loud thud a couple of feet away from them. When the branch landed two necklaces were on the ground next to it each having one gem each; one yellow and the other blue

"This is easier then I thought." He said with a grin as he approached the two necklaces. As he neared the necklaces, a high pitched squawk stopped him in his tracks. When Blake looked forward, he could see three large raptor-like creatures with razor sharp claws slowly closing in on him. "Uh oh, this is not good." He backed off slowly.

"Umm we have more of a problem here!" Paris called out to Blake. As he looked back he could notice two more dragoons. "What are we going to do now?" Paris brought out her rapier while backing up.

"We have no other choice but to fight our way through." Blake replied as he readied another shot. The two of them were now back-to-back. "I hope you know how to fight with that."

"Oh please, I also took up fencing during my free-time back at home." Paris smirked. "I should be the one asking you that."

"Heh we'll see." Blake let loose an arrow sparking with electricity. As the arrow hit the dragoon in the center, the arrow started sparking wildly causing a chain of electricity to hit all three of them. Letting out loud roars, the other two dragoons broke away from the one in the middle and started charging towards them followed by the two right in front of Paris. As all four dragoons got close, they all jumped at them

"Move it!" Blake yelled. The two of them jumped in opposite directions to dodge the attacks. The four dragoons all crashed into each other. "Now!" He yelled once more while the dragoons were disoriented. Blake readied three arrows in his bow all energized with different elements; one fire, one ice, and one electric. Blake let loose his three shots all hitting them simultaneously causing a flurry of effects to take in.

"Time to finish you all off." Paris's body was soon surrounded in a light blue aura, increasing her movements as she sliced at each one with her rapier. After her onslaught has ended all four dragoons all fell to the ground before disappearing all at once.

"Phew, we did it." Blake wiped away some sweat from his forehead.

"Yeah, glad that's-" Paris was caught off when a fire ball suddenly hit her, knocking her down. Blake, his eyes widened, look to see where the shot came from only to see the last remaining dragoon standing, shocks still pulsating from its body. Letting out a loud roar, the dragoon started charging towards him with it's claws on the ready

"Dammit." Blake yelled as he stopped the dragoons claws with his bow. "Grrr." Blake gritted his teeth as the dragoon forced him to buckle down to one knee. "Can't...hold on...for much longer..." He said through his gritted teeth as he desperately tried to push back. As he waited for his imminent defeat, Blake suddenly felt the force lightened and felt some warm blood dripping on him. As he looked towards what happened, to his surprise Paris was up standing with her eyes glowing in a bright orange light and her rapier jabbed deep in to the dragoons neck.

When Blake pushed the dragoon back and jumped out of the way, Paris pulled out her blade and started to jab and slash at the dragoon in combination with her dance steps. As blood started to fly around and scatter, the dragoons body instantly disappear without it even bothering to drop down. As Paris's attack ended, she soon dropped down to her knees and balanced herself on her rapier.

"*gasp* Man...that was a rush hehe..." Paris said weakly as she tried to catch her breath.

"What happened to you though? You were down in flames just a moment ago and now you were fighting as if you were possessed." Blake tried to make sense of what just happened.

"I don't know really." Paris shook her head. "The moment I got hit I just...lost it. It's like something deep down inside of me got unleashed." Her voice trembled slightly. She soon got up with the aid of her sword to raise her up

"Well then, I guess I know who to avoid now." Blake picked up the two necklaces. "Here, you can have this one." Blake tossed her the blue necklace in which she caught easily.

"You really want to be part of the chocobos huh." Paris raised an eye brow at him as she wore the necklace

"Nah, being a Naga just doesn't suit me." Blake grinned as he pocketed his. "Well then, let's get out of here. The smell of dragoon blood is nauseating already." Paris just chuckled in response. The two soon started to head on back towards the entrance and eventually making it out.

"Took you two long enough." Chris said with his arms crossed. "I swear, you two had no clear plan on how to navigate the maze." Chris shook his head. "Well anyways, Paris, you are now part of the Blue Nagas. And you Blake, you are now part of the Yellow Chocobos. Congratulations."

"Thanks for stating the obvious Chris." Blake said sarcastically. Paris just giggled slightly.

"Well why don't I say something not so obvious now." Chris smirked. "Those two necklaces are actually useable items as well." Blake and Paris soon got interested. "Blake. You hold the Necklace of Fire. As long as you have it all of your fire elemental attacks will leave a lingering burn effect."

"Seems redundant but okay." Blake nodded.

"And you Paris, you hold the Necklace of Ice. As long as you have it all of your status abilities gives you or someone else temporary Ice immunity." Chris explained.

"Cool." Paris smiled. Blake just shook his head at her joke.

"Now that you two are done. Kazuo and Nathan, you two are next." Chris motioned for the two to get up. The two mentioned both got up and stood next to Chris. Paris and Blake just sat down next to their respective teammates. "You two will be entering the...Gorgon's lair." He said as the maze stopped to reveal a brightly lit maze with the walls cracked and looked to be seeping with lava. A hot mist soon escaped from the inside of the maze.

"Gorgon? What's that?" Kali asked no one in particular.

"Just imagine Medusa but uglier and has a snake's lower half and doesn't need to look at you to turn you to stone." Dylan replied matter-of-factly.

"I see." Kali nodded.

"Great..." Nathan trailed off as he stared inside the maze.

"How...stunning I should say. Hehehe." No one else laughed at Kazuo's joke. "Well, time to get gorgoing in before the others start stoning me to death. Hahaha." Kazuo entered the maze laughing. Nathan just shook his head before following in.

(Confessionals)

Kazuo: It's time for the moment of truth. Do I or do I not be antagonistic if the two of us end up being on different teams. Lets see how far the butterfly effect can take me.

(End Confessional)

Inside now the molten maze Nathan and Kazuo were being careful with each of their steps for the floor and walls around them could crumble at any moment. Kazuo, who was ahead of the two, was deep in thought as he looked all around him analyzing each dent and crack in the wall. Nathan on the other hand was busy trying to avoid all the lava seeping out through the walls and small puffs of fire that pop out from the ground.

"How are you so calm about this? This place could literally blow up on us." Nathan jumped over a small lava pit. "And you know Chris could possibly do it at any time. Right?" Kazuo just ignored Nathan and took a random turn without even saying anything. "H-hey, wait up." He followed suit.

As Nathan turned the corner to follow Kazuo, he was soon shocked to see what was ahead of him. Sitting right in front of him were the remains off giant eggs surrounded by a pile of dead scaly skins. Near the sight was Kazuo who was inspecting one of the broken shell pieces.

"Hmm you think whatever came out of this is still around?" Kazuo asked without even bothering to look at Nathan. Nathan, terrified at the thought of it still being near by, drew out his Katana and held it up in a defensive stance as he cautiously approached Kazuo.

"If so then we shouldn't be messing around with this stuff." Nathan now was next to Kazuo. "Who knows what-. What was that?" He turned as he heard something crumbling next to them. As Nathan looked around with his sword on the ready, he soon heard a faint hissing sound coupled with some rattling right above them. When he turned he immediately took a step back for on top of the wall was a large humanoid snake-like creature with long slender arms ending with snake heads. The creature wore a leather belt around it's waist with a red jewel for a buckle and a leather collar with a blue jewel on it's neck. Letting out a loud scream, the gorgon pounced on Nathan in which he skillfully dodged out of the way.

"How intriguing, so that's a Gorgon." Kazuo thought aloud. He soon noticed the jewels on the Gorgon. "And those seem to be our gems." He pointed out.

"What makes you say that?" Nathan asked while still keeping his eyes on the creature. The gorgon tried to lash at them with it's long tail but was blocked by an ice barrier put up by Kazuo, the barrier shattering in the process.

"Well let's kill this thing to prove my point." Kazuo casted another spell from his book, this time calling out flaming needles to strike the target. As each needle hit, the attack proved to be worthless for it didn't even scratch the gorgon at all.

"What was that? That did absolutely nothing!" Said Nathan with his eye brows crossed. The Gorgon tried to strike at them with it's snake head arms but each strike was successfully parried by Nathan.

"I don't know, I said in my app that all my abilities will have random elements that I have no control over." Kazuo shrugged.

"Why did you do that for?" Nathan parried another strike and lashed back with his sword.

"Eh, thought it would be boring if I have full control over everything." Kazuo casted the same spell only this time it was made of rock and actually did damage for the attack pierced through the gorgons skin. Letting out another scream, the gorgon started channeling a dark ball of energy in it's snake hands.

"Uh oh, this isn't good." Nathan raised his sword to an over-head stance. As the gorgon fired it's attack, Kazuo was able to raise another barrier to protect them only this time it was made of holy light. The attack hitting the barrier let out a small explosion covering the place in smoke and making the surrounding walls crumble down. As the smoke clears, both Nathan and Kazuo were unphased with the barrier still holding.

"Okay, time to end this." Kazuo forcefully slammed his book closed. As the book closed it started glowing in a dark brown aura causing the ground to erupt with spikes right under the gorgon impaling it from multiple sides. "Now finish it." Kazuo stated nonchalantly.

Nathan readying his blade he charged forward with his Katana raised up high flowing heavily in dark energy. Nathan rushing passed the gorgon, he struck it down with a powerful swing before coming to a stop and sheathing his blade for dramatic effect. After a few seconds had passed the gorgon's body disappeared only leaving behind the two accessories dropping into a pool of blood.

"Like I said, these are our gems." Kazuo picked up the bloody belt with the red jewel. "You can have the other one." Kazuo left the scene without Nathan.

"Thanks..." Nathan picked up the collar and headed back as well. As the two finally came out everyone, except Gelsey, was already their waiting outside.

"Congratulations Kazuo and Nathan." Chris smiled at them.

"Yes, yes, we already know what team we are, no need to explain it further. Just tell us what our items do." Kazuo just held out his belt.

"When did you suddenly get boring?" Chris scoffed. "Whatever. Kazuo, you hold the belt of envy. As long as you have it all of your elemental skills will deal a significant amount of damage if someone else used the same previous element as you on the same target."

"How come he get's such a broken item?" Dylan raised a brow at Chris with his arms crossed.

"Don't worry to much about it. It's not like he can use it effectively." Chris replied with a grin.

"Yeah, he's right. All my skills are set to be random." Kazuo laughed a bit. Dylan just shook his head

"Okay, back to where I was at." Chris faced towards Nathan. "Nathan, you hold the collar of Pride. As long as you have it your weapons will be empowered if someone else has the same weapon as you."

"Well isn't that useless. Since no one else here has a Katana." Nathan pointed out.

"Not my fault." Chris laughed sadistically. "Anyways, Dylan and Clint, you two are next." The two mentioned soon stood next to Chris and the last pair stood by their new teammates. "You two will enter the...Hall of mirrors. Hmm did not expect this so soon." The inside of the maze revealed to be very reflective for the walls, floor, and ceiling were made from mirrors.

"Why's that?" Dylan asked looking a bit curious. Chris just waved his hand dismissively

"I'll explain the details once the challenge is over. For now, just worry about what lies inside." Chris just gave Dylan a pat on the shoulder. "Well, good luck. You two are going to need it." He laughed silently. The two, giving Chris looks, just went inside their maze.

"So...what are they going to face off against anyways?" Lucette asked looking a bit curious herself.

"Who knows but whatever it is I'm sure Clint can handle it. Right?" Estwynn replied, his voice sounding that he's unsure with himself.

Inside the maze now, Dylan and Clint were feeling their way through the maze for the reflective interior was making it impossible to tell which path is real. As the two take on turns whenever they popped up to be real, Dylan decided to strike up a conversation to pass the time.

"So, any games you like?" Dylan asked to break the silence between them. Clint just ignored him as he kept feeling his side of the wall looking intently at his own reflection. "Hey, I'm talking to you hear!" Dylan narrowly fell over as his hand slid through an actual path. "Found one." Dylan composed himself. Both him and Clint soon went through the path he found.

As the two continue on with their search, using the same tactic, they soon found themselves at a dead end for they could see their reflection just ahead of them as they neared.

"Dammit. Time to do some back tracking I guess..." Dylan was about to turn around when Clint suddenly stopped him. "Huh? What is it?"

"Somethings off." Clint finally spoke as he approached his reflection. As Clint was now right in-front of his reflection, he soon placed his right hand on the wall and inspected his reflection carefully.

"Umm what are you doing?" Dylan asked looking a bit confused. Dylan was slowly walking towards Clint but he suddenly stopped when Clint signaled him to. Staring intently at Dylan's reflection, Clint signaled for Dylan to back up without even looking back.

"Hey, try backing up a bit." Clint commanded as he stared at Dylan's reflection. Dylan looking very skeptical now just took a few steps back before Clint stopped him. Staring much more intently at the reflections, he placed his other hand on the wall. As he carefully analyzed each detail about his reflection, he soon noticed his left hand wasn't perfectly aligned with his reflection. His eyes widening, Clint's reflection soon gave of a wide grin making Clint jump back. Clint un-slung his bow from his back and readied an arrow for shot.

"What the? What's going on here." Dylan drew out his sword.

"Heh. Took you long enough." Clint's reflection said back to him using Clint's own voice. His reflection soon stepped out of the wall and slowly approached the two. "You know, I wasn't really sure if I should posses his reflection or yours but seeing that intent look on your face I just couldn't help but take yours instead." He laughed a bit maniacally. "Now, time to see what you're made off." The reflection soon drew out his dagger and charged at Clint.

Clint, letting his arrow lose, shot at his reflection causing it to shatter into multiple glass pieces. "You think that's enough?" His own voice echoed throughout the maze. A moment later the reflection once again reappeared on the wall beside him to give him a slash but Dylan managed to parry the blow.

"Take this!" Dylan yelled as he punched the reflection with the gauntlet on his left hand glowing with dark energy. The reflection once more shattered into small glass pieces.

"Hahaha. Try as much as you like. Both of you are never going to win." Two more of Clint's reflection appeared; one behind and the other in front of them. Both of the copies soon lunged towards them with their daggers. Clint parried the attack with his bow before shattering his opponent with quick swipe with it as well and Dylan managed to beat his with a powerful downward slash. A maniacal laugh soon echoed throughout the maze once more before two more copies appeared.

"Dammit! Their has got to be away to end this." Dylan delivered a strong kickback before slamming down with his sword. Clint shot another arrow to shatter his opponent. Two more copies of Clint appeared once again. "Ugh, we'll never get out of here at this rate." He jabbed his sword forward.

Meanwhile outside the maze, everyone was watching the battle play out on the large holographic screen right above the entrance. As the non-stop onslaught continues, Estwynn soon approached Chris who was busy watching with a grin on his face.

"Hey Chris." Estwynn called out him with a serious look. "Isn't this enough already? They've been at it for nearly half an hour now." The screen was shown with Dylan catching his breath with him trying to balance on his sword. Clint was leaning on the wall to his right holding out his dagger in a back-hand position. "You've had your fun, now let them go."

Chris chuckled slightly. "Fine, this wasn't meant to be their actual challenge anyways." Chris pulled out his panel once more.

Back inside the maze Dylan and Clint were trying their hardest to fight off their enemies. The Clint no longer having arrows in his quiver while Dylan was on one knee trying to catch his breath. All around them were shattered glass pieces with walls all shattered. More of Clint's copies appeared one more in-front of them.

"Hahahaha. Struggle all you want, theirs no way of getting out of this." Said both of the Clint copies with smirks on their faces before lunging at them. As both Clint and Dylan prepared themselves for another attack, both of the copies suddenly shattered on their own with an agonizing scream filling the maze.

"What the..." Dylan trailed off as he turned to look at Clint. Clint just shrugged for he didn't know what happened as well.

"Ahem. May I have your attentions please?" Chris's voice echoed throughout the maze. "I would like to inform the two of you that your challenge is over but don't worry, you'll still get your items." Two chests appeared right in-front of them; one silver and the other gold. "Take this portal as well once you got your items." A grey portal appeared behind the chests. "That is all." He ended.

"Okay..." Dylan trailed off completely baffled. Dylan opened the silver chest and pulled out it's contents. Inside the silver chest was a silver crest encrusted with a yellow jewel in the shape of a lion's head and a silver key. "Oh well, it seems I'm a chocobo now hehe but I wonder what's with this key for?" He held out the key.

Clint opening the gold chest pulled out a gold hair pin with a blue jewel in the shape of a feather and golden key. Dylan, seeing Clint's items, couldn't help but stop his laughter. Letting out a sigh, the later just pocketed both his items.

"Good thing I didn't chose the gold chest huh?" Dylan laughed silently. Clint just gave him a piercing stare before entering the portal. "Oh c'mon, I was just kidding." He soon followed after. As they both entered the portal they were soon brought back outside the maze with everyone out their to greet them.

"You liked your challenge?" Chris said with a smug look and his arms crossed. "To be honest with you two that wasn't supposed to be a challenge until everyone has their teams." Chris chuckled slightly. "But since the two of you are such dedicated gamers I decided to let you go through with it even though their wasn't any chance of winning."

"Wait, so your telling us that we would have been stuck in their fighting until we dropped?" Dylan's voice raised up a bit with his eye brows crossed. "Are you insane? We could've died in their!"

"Hah! Death." Chris laughed. "Don't worry about that, you'll respawn every time you 'die', all though, their would be consequences. Anyways, onto your items."

"Wait, wait, what consequences?" Leonard asked from behind them.

"Oh I don't know, depends on the challenge really. For this one, if you die in the forest you'll get set back farther away from the maze but if you died during the maze challenge you'll be forced to do it again this time without a partner." Chris explained to them. Leonard's eyes widened when he thought about redoing the maze alone.

"I see, so death makes things harder for us huh?" Ginger pondered a bit. "Well then, I'll make sure to not let anything get close to us Lucette." Ginger said confidently. Lucette just gave her a thumbs up.

"Okay, now back to the items." Chris soon faced Dylan. "Dylan, you hold the Lion's crest. As long as you have it, you'll continuosly ramp up in strength while still in combat only resetting once the fight is over but you will lose energy much quicker."

"Well then, It seems I'm a litteral glass cannon now." Dylan grinned as he put on the crest on his right shoulder. "But what about these keys though?" Dylan brought out his silver key

"I'll explain once everyone has their teams." Chris waved him off. "Anyways, you Clint." Chris looked towards Clint. "You have the Eagle's hair pin. As long as you have it all of your ranged attacks will pierce through any armor but your melee will be significantly weaker."

"I can live with it." Clint attached his pin to his belt. Clint just eyed Dylan before standing next to the other Blue Nagas. Dylan, letting out a small smile, stood next to the other yellow chocobos.

"Okay, up next we'll have..." Chris scanned the crowd. "Estwynn and Tristan." The two mentioned soon stepped forward. "You two will be entering the...Mech Lab." The maze soon stopped with the interior looking to be made of steel with pipes running through the floor and ceiling.

"Interesting." Tristan grinned as he peaked inside.

"I hope this is an actual challenge this time." Estwynn crossed his arms at Chris.

"Don't worry, it is an actual challenge this time around. Now get going, we don't have all day to this challenge." Chris flicked his fingers to reveal a holographic timer right above the maze with the time reading '16:30'. "The developers said we only have until nine tonight to finish this before auto-assigning happens."

"Wait, what time did we get here anyways?" Blake asked no one in particular.

"Last I checked it was around eleven or something." Janet answered.

"We only have roughly more than four hours huh? And seeing were the sixth pair to go in we only have an hour or so to finish this. Seems doable enough." Tristan stated as he entered the maze first. Estwynn came in soon after.

"So, who want's to go next once they're done?" Chris asked the remaining pairs.

"I'll go last. My partner isn't here yet anyways." Kali raised her hand.

"We'll be second to the last. I still need to discuss a few more things with Derek over here." Janet pointed towards Derek who's just sitting on his own.

"Okay, then that means me and Lucette are up next then." Ginger said from where she was sitting.

Deep inside the mechanized maze, Tristan and Estwynn were just following a thick lining of pipes to see if it would lead to anything good. The former though looking much at home for he couldn't help but wonder what could be running the place

"You sure do like what you are seeing huh?" Estwynn asked with his voice sounding curious.

"You bet I do!" Tristan said happily. "I grew up fascinated about all these mechanical stuff that I couldn't help but feel very much excited the moment I stepped inside that building in the real world."

"Really now? I grew up loving these Japanese tokusatsu heroes, they all look so cool and amazing that I couldn't help but make my character here be like one of them." Estwynn explained his story. "To be honest though, I completely based myself around Kamen rider wizard hehe." His voice sounding a bit embarrassed.

"Kamen rider? Is that a new power ranger or something?" Tristan tapped his chin in thought. Estwynn, though not obvious, jaw just dropped due to someone else making that connection.

"No. Let me explain, you see..." Estwynn went on to explain everything about Kamen rider. As they continued on with their search, as well as with Estwynn's explanation, they soon managed to follow the long string of pipes back to what seems to be storage area of some sort. Far into the back wall where all the pipes started converging appears to be a core glowing with energy that appears to be powering something right below it. Right under core was a giant mech robot armed with an assortment of guns and cannons with both its arms being giant Gatling guns and appeared to be moving on tank treads.

"Wow." The two said in unison for they marveled at the site. As they both went inside the storage facility, the room started flashing in red with a loud siren going off. 'Warning. Warning. Intruders.' A mechanized voice echoed throughout the room. 'Activating emergency protocols.' The voice said once more and in an instant the mech soon came to life with it's guns armed and aimed at the two. The door behind the two closed shut

"Uh oh, this is not good." Estwynn's voice changed to that of a serious one. He drew out his battle axe and held it out in a defensive stance. Tristan did the same and drew out his Pipe wrench.

"So umm what now?" Tristan asked while keeping his eyes locked onto the mech. The mech's gatling arms soon started revolving as well as two large shoulder canons got raised up and started collecting energy. As the mech finished charging up it's attack, it soon started firing a fury of bullets as well as a stream of powerful energy blasts at them. Both of them managing to jump out of the way were both sent crashing down for the explosion that took place was strong enough to knock them farther away.

"Ugh, can we even beat this thing?" Tristan quickly got up from his side of the room. He called out two large canons from his back. "Take this!" He fired multiple shots at the left shoulder of the mech causing small explosions but dealt almost no damage at all to it's armor. The mech taking noticed aimed one of the laser cannons attached to it's sides and started firing. "Dammit." Tristan rolled away From the attack.

"Try this then. Spell Medal!" A golden coin appeared onto Estwynn's hand in which he inserted into a slot on the axe head. Both the blades on the axe started glowing with energy. "Now. Take this!" Estwynn slashed his axe in an arc right in front of him sending a sonic wave towards the mech. The attack hitting managed to blow of some small pieces of armor on the mech's right shoulder causing sparks to fly.

"Yes!" Estwynn cheered at the result. "Now, Phase shift!" He transformed back into his yellow suit with his bow gun. Inserting another coin on a slot by the trigger on his bow gun, the nozzle on weapon started glowing a bright red. As he fired, multiple flaming bolts started shooting out of his weapon all hitting the exposed portion of the mech's armor. The shoulder blew up once more with smoke starting to come out. The mech turning it's entire upper half aimed all of it's guns at Estwynn. "Shit." He jumped away the moment it fired.

"It's my turn now." Tristan aimed his cannons at the broken shoulder. Firing an array of shots once more, they all hit the damaged shoulder piece causing one last explosion before the entire arm fell of with a loud crash. The now exposed arm socket started sparking wildly before another explosion occurred. The mech going wild now started charging towards Estwynn while firing laser shots at everywhere.

"Oh god." Estwynn managed to roll away to safety once more. The mech crashed into the wall before more explosions happened from the damaged area. Estwynn and Tristan now able to see from behind the mech noticed a couple valves connecting the backside of it's hull to a large exposed core on it's back in between the large canons.

"Umm is that?" Tristan pointed towards it. Estwynn just nodded, his face though not visible was clearly disappointed. The former letting out a sigh just shot at the exposed core causing another large explosion to occur causing the mech to die down soon after.

"*sigh* that mech had potential as well." Estwynn shook his head in disappointment.

"Agreed." Tristan nodded. "Well, time to find our gems I guess. Given that this was our fight then it's bound to be around here somewhere." The two searched the area for their gems after a disappointing revelation. After a while of searching, the two only managed to find two USB sticks inside a closed room in the storage hanger.

"Is this it?" Estwynn held up the blue USB stick.

"It could be. I mean everyone else came back with items so this might as well be it." Tristan held in his hand the red counterpart. "Well, let's head on back. I need a long break after this whole disappointment."

"Yeah, me too." Estwynn agreed. The two of them followed the pipes back towards the entrance. Outside the maze, Chris was their to greet them.

"Did you guys enjoy your maze?" Chris smirked.

"It was fun at first, got scared a bit when we got attacked but it all ended with disappointment." Estwynn frowned, though not visible. "I mean, who puts the energy core exposed like that?"

"Well, I don't care about your enjoyment." Chris said plainly. "Now, onto the items since by now you already know your teams."

"Wait, so these USBs are our items?" Tristan asked. "How are we going to use them though? We don't come with USB ports."

"We'll fix that later." Chris waved him off. "Anyways, the items." Chris faced Tristan. "Tristan. You hold the Power Data. As long as you have it all of your charge up attacks will deal more damage."

"Wow. I can barely make use of this." Tristan just pocketed his USB

Chris faced Estwynn. "And you Estwynn. You hold the Energy Data. As long as you have it all of your skills won't drain to much energy."

"Good, switching forms and using medals placed such a heavy load on me." Estwynn replied. The duo leaving Chris headed towards their new teammates.

"Finally. It's our turn." Ginger stood up and stretched her arms. "C'mon Lucette, lets get this over with." The pair went up to stand next to Chris.

"Excited huh? Lets see if you'll still feel the same after this challenge." Chris pressed on the panel once more. "You two will enter the...Bandit camp. Well isn't that boring." Chris rolled his eyes. The inner wall of the maze looked to be made out of wood with a couple banners and skulls hanging from pikes inside.

"Hah! This is easier then I thought." Ginger went on inside with Lucette trailing behind.

(Confessionals)

Ginger: Now it's time to prove my worth to my future teammates. This is also my chance to show that swine that I'm better than him hehehe.

Lucette: Bandits? I hope Ginger can fight them of easily. I'll just do my best to heal her up as much I can.

Kali: I wonder what's taking Gelsey so long to get here? I hope nothing bad happened to her.

(End Confessional)

Meanwhile somewhere deep in the forest, Gelsey was shown walking aimlessly around the place trying to find the maze. As she was walking around she failed to notice a snare trap setted up in front of her snagging her by the right leg and causing her to hung upside down on a tall tree.

"Good job Gelsey, that's like the seventh trap already." She sighed.

Back inside the maze, Ginger was shown walking confidently around the maze while Lucette looked a bit more worried for she held out her staff to her chest.

"How can you be so calm about this place? Their could be bandits lurking around you know." Lucette was franticly looking around every turn and corner they passed by as well as looking behind them from time to time.

"Oh please, what can some silly bandits do to us?" Ginger grinned. "As long as I have these babies theirs nothing to worry about." She twirled both her guns before returning them both to their holsters. As the two turned a corner they could suddenly hear light footsteps ahead of them. "Move back!" Ginger whispered for Lucette to hide behind the wall they came from.

With the footsteps getting closer and closer, Ginger motioned for them to move deeper back in to where the shadows were. As the footsteps got close now, two figures walked passed their pathway and went straight on ahead to a different path. Ginger quickly making her way to the edge of the walls she soon peaked at the two as they walked farther away.

"Who were they?" Lucette asked in a hushed toned.

"Looks like the bandits this place is infested with." Ginger replied.

"What are we going to do now?"

"Lets follow them. They might lead us to somewhere." Ginger suggested before silently taking the same path as the two bandits. Lucette, seeing that she has no choice in the matter, just followed her with her plan.

As the two follow the bandits around the lengthy maze, they soon came to a stop when the bandits theu were following turned a corner. Ginger poking her head slightly out, they soon saw the two they were following talking to another pair just ahead of them. All of the bandits ahead of them all wore similar cloth tunics and pants as well as having red bandanas tied around their necks. Each of the bandits held on to them different types of weapons.

"What are they talking about?" Lucette asked silently.

"I don't know, can't hear them well from here."

"How many are they?" Lucette asked once more.

"Their's four of them now." Ginger replied. As they continue on to watch what was happening, they failed to notice another bandit was walking up from behind them. The bandit seeing the two girls decided to yell out to them.

"Hey! You two!" The bandit from behind them yelled out. The other bandits hearing his call all turned to face Ginger who they immidiately spotted. All four of them looking at each other nodded before rushing towards Ginger's position with one guy running of towards the opposite direction.

"Dammit! Run!" Ginger took Lucette by her hand and started running down a different path.

"Whoa!" Lucette tried to keep up Ginger's fast paced running as she was being dragged around. Looking back, she could see the bandits were closing in on their tails. "I thought you can handle this?" She said while running.

"Never mind that! For now just run!" Ginger drew out one of her guns. "Take this!" She fired a barrage of magical bullets at the bandits all of which exploding upon contact. Most of the shots missed except for one that managed to hit the shoulder of one of the bandits. The bandit that got hit let out a pained filled scream before stoping with giving chase. As Ginger fired more shots a sudden clicking sound was heard. "Dammit." She yelled before withdrawing her gun and bringing out the other.

"Their's a door up ahead!" Lucette pointed out. Ginger looking in front of her soon saw the wooden double doors Lucette was pointing at. Taking a couple more shots at the remaining bandits, Ginger and Lucette busted the door open before slamming it shut. With the door closed the bandits started bashing and pushing the door back in attempt to force it open.

"Quickly! Find something to lock the door!" Ginger said while trying her best to keep the door closed. As she tried to push back, an axe blade suddenly broke through the door. "Hurry!" Lucette franticly looking around soon gave Ginger a steel long sword. Ginger grabbing hold of the sword quickly shoved it in-between the doors handles before jumping away from the door. As they slowly backed away from the doors, both of them with their weapons in hand, the constant slamming soon stopped with some foot steps moving away from the door. Both letting out heavy sighs they soon dropped onto the floor both panting heavily.

"Man *gasp* that was *gasp* close." Lucette says in-between breaths.

"Yeah, were did you get that sword though?" Ginger asked looking a bit winded. Lucette just pointed to the right side of the room. Looking towards where Lucette was pointing at, Ginger soon took notice of the array of weaponry that was stacked right beside them.

"We must be in their armory or something since their is more over here as well." Lucette said as she got up and went towards another rack of weapons right behind them.

"Huh, who knew bandits hold this many types of weapons." Ginger said as she inspected one of the sword cabinets before looking somewhere else. "Hmm this looks useful." Ginger held in her hand a round silver shield with straps on the inner side. Equipping the shield to her right arm she felt that the weight was just right for her. "Lucky that we found this place huh?" Ginger asked as she scavenged around some more.

"Hey Ginger, I think I found something." Lucette called out to her partner. Ginger placing down one of the daggers went up next to where Lucette was.

"What is it?" Ginger asked as she peered over Lucette's shoulder.

"I think I found our gems." Lucette held in her hand two silver rings both encrusted with a jewel each; one yellow and the other blue.

"Nice eye their Lucette." Ginger said with a smile. "You can go ahead and pick first. You're the one who found them." She insisted. As Lucette was busy thinking about which one she should get, a loud thumping noise was heard from right outside.

"Umm what was that?" Lucette asked as she looked towards the doors. Another loud thump was soon heard, only this time it sounded a lot closer. As the two looked towards the wooden doors, the doors suddenly busted open with the doors shattering. Outside the doorway stood a large stone golem with a couple bandits standing right behind it.

"Since when did bandits have golems on them?" Ginger looked surprise as she brought out her gun. The bandits soon came rushing in with the golem on stand by. "Stand back Lucette, this might get messy." Ginger held up her shield and readied her gun. Gingers body suddenly started glowing a bright blue before fading. Looking a bit startled, Ginger looked back towards Lucette who appeared to be finished in casting a spell.

"Their, that might help." Lucette said with a smile. "I buffed up your speed in order for you to attack and move faster. Now go get them." Lucette gestured towards the bandits with a confident look. Ginger grinning at her partner looked back to face her foes and charged at them with her sheild raised high.

As the bandits started charging her with their swords raised, Ginger managed to block off one of the attacker's sword before pushing him back and jabbing her blade on his chest. She quickly pulled her gun out his chest and did a spin to do an over head slash at a different bandit. Ginger suddenly followed up her attack with a shoulder bash to the bandit she just struck down before shooting at the last bandit behind him. Each time Ginger landed a hit, her gun was getting empowered along with the energy blade glowing brighter. With the empowered bullet hitting the last bandit, all of their bodies dropped down dead on the ground before disappearing and leaving only a pool of blood where each body fell.

"Damn, what an adrenaline rush!" Ginger laughed as Lucette's buff timed out on her. The stone golem came stomping in next.

"Umm Ginger, we still have one more customer." Lucette took a step back as she eyed the golem.

"Hmph, this will be over quick." Ginger gave a confident grin. "Hmm I wonder if this would work." She pulled out both her guns and crossed them. "Freikugel!" Both of her guns suddenly started emanating in blinding light. As the light grew brighter her guns started merging with each other forming into the shape of a sniper rifle. With light dying down her new gun was completely formed while still maintaining its pure white color. At the end of the long barrel of the rifle was a long energy blade pulsating with energy. "Oh heck yeah! Now this is what I'm talking about!"

"That's cool and all but hurry up and shoot it!" Lucette exclaimed as the golem was charging at them. Ginger taking aim at the giant golem soon pulled the trigger sending a powerful energy blast blasting through the golem's stone chest. As the attack hit, the golem got knocked back before falling down with loud crash.

"*whistles* This thing packs a punch." Ginger smiled as she twirled her rifle but ended up dropping it causing it to spilt back into it's original form. "Oops hehe." She picked back up her two guns placed them back into their holsters.

"That was impressive though." Lucette smiled at Ginger. "I just wish we were in the same team." She pouted as she held out the two rings.

"It's okay, I'll just make sure not to hurt you to badly." Ginger laughed quietly as she picked up the blue ring. "Nah just kidding." She patted Lucette's shoulder. "Lets get out of here." Ginger soon lead the way back to entrance with Lucette following. As the two finally made it back out, Chris was already their standing right in front to greet them.

"You two sure did take your sweet time." Chris started. "The two of you by far took the longest inside. The two of you took so long in fact that I already made Janet and Derek went in and they got out first." Chris showed the replay of their challenge showcasing Janet knocking away hordes of demon-like creatures with her gravity powers and Derek fighting of waves of them alone with a fury of punches and kicks. "Heck, they were even the fastest pair only clocking in at forty-five minutes." Chris pointed towards Janet and Derek standing by their teams. Both of which stood next to the other Red Dragons. "Watching you two following around bandits doesn't really make for quality tv to be honest."

"Wait what? How long did it take us to finish the challenge." Ginger asked with a surprised look. Chris pointed towards the holographic timer right above them with the time '19:50' written on it.

"You two entered the maze around six." Chris thought back.

"But it's still broad daylight out here." Ginger pointed out.

"Time may pass but their isn't any day cycles here. You all could be in here for weeks and you still wouldn't notice it." Chris explained. "Anyways, onto your items." Chris faced Ginger first. "Also I would have to confiscate that shield of yours. Any item that wasn't dropped by a monster isn't counted." Chris pressed a button on his panel causing the shield to disappear. "Okay, back to what I was saying. *clears throat* Ginger, you hold the Ring of Vigor. As long as you have it you are immune to sleep effects."

"And what about me Chris?" Lucette asked.

"I was getting to that." Chris faced Lucette. "You hold the Ring of Tenacity. As long as you have it the effects of all forms of crowd control will be greatly reduced on you."

"Crowd control? What's that?" Lucette asked a bit confused.

"*sigh* Dylan, would you mind?" Chris faced Dylan in which he didn't hesitate to explain.

"Crowd control effects are basically stuff like stuns, snares, taunts, etc. They're typically AOE abilities that are fairly easy to dodge but their are some that are single target that is harder to dodge in most cases." Dylan explained all in one breath. "Good enough for you Chris?"

"Yeah, whatever." Chris replied. "Now go stand by your teams so that we could finaly wrap this up.

"Wait, what about me? Gelsey isn't here yet!" Kali raised her hand.

"Oh right, where is she anyways?" Blake pondered as she looked around.

"Probably lost or trapped somewhere." Kazuo replied. "Hmm I wonder..."

"M-maybe something b-bad had happened to h-her?" Phoebe said meekly. "M-maybe the m-monsters got her." She trembled at the thought.

"*sigh* It seems I'll just have to look for her." Chris pressed a button on the panel causing him to disappear. Chris reappeared moments later in-front of a large pit hole. As Chris looked down inside no one was down their.

"Umm Chris, up here." Gelsey's voice called out to him. As Chris looked up he could see Gelsey trapped inside a net hanging from a tree branch.

"Have you been up their this whole time?" Chris asked looking a bit surprised.

"Not really. This is like the tenth or so trap I got caught in. I lost count to be honest." Gelsey shrugged. Chris shaking his head pulled out his holographic panel once more and pressed a few buttons on it causing the pit to disappear as well as freeing Gelsey. "Ouch..." She said as she fell hard on the ground.

Gelsey was shown wearing an outfit is composed of an off-the-shoulders garment that extends to her mid-thighs and ends up as a skirt. It is blue with pink trimmings and a few touches of yellow. Her hat is blue, along with pink rings and a pink spiral on one side. She wears boots reaching halfway up her thighs, and her wand, which is blue, has a spiral which is similar to the one on her hat, except that it is yellow. She wears pink and blue gauntlets on both her arms.

"Where are we anyways?" Chris pressed another button in his to pull out a holographic map. Their location was shown to be in the far west away from the maze. "Umm Gelsey, unless you didn't know, the maze is back that way." Chris pointed towards the direction behind her.

"Oh that makes sense. I've been roaming around here for who knows how long not finding anything other than traps" Gelsey explained. Chris just gave himself a face palm.

"*sigh* To save us both the time and effort take this portal it will send you to where the maze is." Chris pressed on his panel and a red portal appeared. "Now hurry up, we're running out of time." Chris disappeared once more. As Chris reappeared, Gelsey was already their joining the cast.

"Good thing you're finally here." Kali approached Gelsey. "We could finally get on with the challenge." Kali dragged Gelsey with her to the front of the maze.

"Hold it." Chris stopped them both. "Since we barely have an hour left, you two are automatically assigned to the yellow chocobos. Besides, they're only team left with openings left anyways." Chris explained to both of them. "Here, just have the items prepared for both of you." Chris pressed on his panel and two silver talismans with yellow jewels appeared right in front of them. "These are the Talismans of Alacrity. As long you two have them you two are resistant to slowing effects.

"Oh, cool. Less hard work for me then." Gelsey grabbed her Talisman. Kali just pouted as she grabbed hers and went on to stand next to the other Yellow chocobos.

"Now that the teams are filled it's time for the final roll call." Chris started. "In team Red Dragons we have Kazuo, Janet, Derek, Alice, Laren, and Tristan." The six mentioned gained red dragon symbols on their outfits. "For the Blue Nagas we have Paris, Ginger, Nathan, Phoebe, Clint, and Estwynn." The next six all gained Blue Naga symbols on their outfits. "And lastly, in the Yellow Chocobos we have Leonard, Lucette, Dylan, Blake, Kali, and Gelsey." The last that were mentioned gained Yellow Chocobo symbols on their outfits.

"Good thing this is now over. After this whole ordeal, I'm going to take a long nights rest in my cabin." Leonard got up and stretched his arms.

"Agreed." Gelsey nodded.

"You didn't even get to do anything." Dylan raised a brow at her.

"Oh you don't know how much of a rough day it was for me." Gelsey replied.

"So, what are you going to do once we get back into the real world?" Laren grinned while asking Alice.

"Probably staying as far away from you." Alice glared.

"It seems as though you're sleeping with Leonard tonight." Paris winked at Phoebe. The latter just turned bright red as she caught on to what Paris meant.

"P-Paris! Th-that's not s-something you sh-should think about!" Phoebe's voice pitched up a bit. Paris just chuckled silently as she patted Phoebe's head.

"Hold it everyone!" Chris announced. "Their is still one more thing I have to announce." Everyone all looked to face Chris. "As all of you know, it is near tradition for immunity statues to be available to be found in every season. Right?" Everyone nodded. "Well, were not having any of that this time around." Some of the contestants eyes widened.

"What do you mean no more immunity statues?" Ginger started as she was completely surprised.

"Yeah, without it wouldn't this season feel a bit bland since no one will have a trump card?" Blake added.

"Oh don't worry, their is still a form of immunity. The producers just decided to one-up it this season." Chris grinned. "For this season not only will you have immunity but as well as an instant pass for merge!" Chris raised his hands dramatically.

"An instant merge pass? That sounds a bit insane don't you think?" Alice questioned at the idea.

"Oh don't worry, their is a catch to this." Chris held up his grin. "Let me explain first." Chris waved them off. "You see, the way you gain this...buff so to say is by completing one of either two challenges." Chris motioned for Dylan and Clint to come over. "The first challenge is well the Hall of Mirrors." Chris pressed the button on his panel to turn the maze back to where Clint and Dylan entered. "Your goal here is to reach the end of maze to take the Mirror Knight challenge but like you saw before you are forced to first go through the Mirror Demon." Chris showed a still image of Clint and Dylan's battle. "For the next challenge." Chris pressed on his panel to bring down a silver door closing of the maze. "Can you kindly lock the door Dylan."

"Umm okay..." Dylan approached the door with his silver key and turned the lock. The door suddenly turned a bronze color.

"Now Clint, please unlock the door." Chris motioned for Clint next. As Clint approached the door and turned his key, the door turned a bright gold before opening. Inside the maze held an almost heavenly feel for the interior emanated with bright prismatic light and cloud like walls surround the place.

"Whoa..." Laren was awestruck at the site.

"Eh, to bright for my taste." Alice commented.

"Same." Dylan nodded.

"This here is Heaven's Gate. Same goal as before but you'll be taking on the Rainbow Magi challenge but would have to get through the Archangels first." Chris explained to them all. "Too bad nobody had the chance to take on this challenge otherwise I would have shown a picture of the Archangels." Chris frowned slightly.

"Why do I feel like their is a certain drawback to these challenges." Alice said looking quite skeptical.

"Yes, that is correct. The drawback to taking on these challenges is that once you've died at any point you are automatically eliminated without a chance in coming back as a returnee for merge." Chris gave of a malicious grin. Almost everyone felt differently about the challenges. Some looked confident, others looked skeptical, and some looked quite nervous about it.

"Um C-Chris, a-are we all forced t-to take on th-these challenges?" Phoebe asked nervously from her team.

"Not at all. These challenges are all optional." Chris answered. "You may take either challenge any point during the season before merge hits. Since their is two challenges only two contestants can gain these buffs. You may bring a partner with you but only one person gets the chance as well as only one will be eliminated if you both get defeated." Chris explained to them all. "Any more questions?" No one else spoke up. "Good. Also one last thing. You may return to this maze as often as you may like before every challenge to do whatever you wish. Just approach me if you want to take on the challenges. With that said, you may all head back to the cabins now." Chris pressed a button on his panel causing everyone, including himself, to disappear.

After a few seconds had passed, the pods in the real world opened up letting a white mist escape from each one. As everyone groggily got up from each of their pods, Chris was already their standing in the middle of the room to greet them.

"So, how was virtual reality treating you guys?" Chris smiled at them with his arms crossed.

"Ugh, everything felt so real." Paris inspected herself. "I could still feel the burns on me."

"I can agree to that. My body is still aching from that battle." Dylan stretched his back from the pod across from Paris.

"I don't know about you guys but I'm heading back in first thing in morning." Ginger said from her pod.

"Yeah, me too. Want to have a little practice match?" Estwynn asked with a smile on his face.

"Hah! You're on." Ginger faced him with confident look.

"I j-just hope that I-I can prove to b-be useful for my t-team during the ch-challenges." Phoebe said sheepishly as she got up from her pod.

"Don't you worry Phoebe. After that performance I doubt they would see you any less useful." Kazuo said reassuringly after he got up from the pod next to her. Everyone else didn't bother to say anything else and all got out of building one at a time leaving only the host alone.

"Well, their you have it dear viewers." Chris gave of his trademark smile as the camera zooms in on him. "With everyone finally getting a taste of what it feels like to be in virtual reality along with finally getting their teams. Who knows how things will end up." Chris motioned for the large monitor above him showcasing each team with pictures of each member. "Will Leonard ever warm-up to Phoebe? What skills does the late Gelsey posses? What will happen to Lucette and Ginger's friendship now that they're on opposite teams? And most importantly, who will be the first victim of elimination? Find out next time on Total...Drama...Dungeon Hunters!"

* * *

 **Author's note: Dear god this took me forever to write. Who knew writing a TD story would be this difficult. Anyways, I hope all of you are happy with the portrayals of your OC's virtual versions, you guys don't know how difficult it was planning out this specific challenge. Hopefully the next challenge I have in store won't be as hard. Also apologies for Kali's, Janet's, and Derek's creators for not having them get showcased much.**

 **Okay, onto the main topic. Like what Chris said, along with my question previously, your OC can take on any of these two challenges. How this will work is that any of you can PM if you want your OC to take on any of the two challenges at any point during the story and I'll write a special chapter/episode just for them. You can make them bring anyone along with them but I'm not sure if the owner of the OC would actually agree to that. Anyways, so that you guys won't be left in the dark about the "bosses" of each challenge, I'll be posting about them in my profile so that you can go back to them if any of you feel like challenging them.**

 **Now, onto the chapter question. Now that each of them have their respective teams along with a vague idea on who they are up against. Who do you think would your OC watch out for from each team, including their own, as well as who would they be willing to vote out when elimination eventually comes. Like last time, send your answers through PM. That is all, until next time!**


	5. Seekers of the Sword

"Previously on Total Drama: Dungeon Hunters." Chris started off when the camera zoomed in on him. "Our contestants finished their first challenge to determine which team they would belong to without the threat of elimination." The team names, along with the names of each member, were shown on screen. "This time however things won't be as easy for our contestants for the threat of elimination looms around every corner." Chris gave of a sly grin. "Which team will be the first to claim victory? Which team will lose the first member? And will Gelsey finally be able to show off what she can do? Find out now on Total...Drama...Dungeon Hunters!" Chris opened up his arms dramatically.

~(Theme song)~ (Do theme song...)

(Cabin 1: Leonard and Phoebe's)

Inside the rustic cabin was a single bunk bed, an oak wood table with two wooden chairs, and a sink with a mirror on one corner. Laying on the top bunk of the bed was Leonard who seemed to be still fast asleep for some loud snoring could be heard. On the bottom bunk was Phoebe who was already awake and was sitting on the side of her bed.

"*yawn* W-what time is it?" The young doll just rubbed her eyes as she looked at the red wall clock hanging on the wall across from them. Phoebe was shown wearing a light blue buttoned-up shirt with a lacy blue ribbon on her collar. She also wore a light blue pair of pajama pants that reached just above her ankles. "S-seven thirty huh? *yawn*" She got up and stretched her body before walking towards the sink.

"*yawn* What are you up to now, runt?" Leonard groggily rose up from his bed. He removed the sheets covering his legs before jumping dropping down from his bed. Leonard was wearing a plain white shirt paired up with black sweat pants.

"Oh, m-morning Jag. J-just washing is all." Phoebe replied as she finished washing her face. She turned off the tap before walking back to her bed. "Umm e-excuse me." Leonard moved out of the way. Phoebe reached under the bed to grab her bag and reached inside for clothes.

"Hey, you know where the bathroom is?" Leonard asked, his eyes barely opened.

"Umm I'm n-not sure a-about the men's room since the girl's b-bathroom is just behind the c-cabins." Phoebe tried to explain what she could remember.

"Hmm okay *yawn*" Leonard stretched his arms for a bit before walking towards the door. As he opened the door he suddenly had to shield his eyes for the sun's rays were beaming down on him. After a few seconds had passed he slowly went down the steps of their cabin before proceeding to look for the bathroom.

"Oh, morning Leonard." A male voice greeted him. As Leonard adjusted his eyes he soon took notice of Estwynn wearing his normal clothes and looked to be headed towards the challenge building. "Where are you going?" He asked.

"Trying to find the bathroom. You know where it is?" Leonard replied, his voice sounding a bit hoarse.

"It's just deep in the woods right behind the cabins. But becareful though, it's a bit tight in their." Estwynn answered. "Anyways got to go. Me and Ginger are going to have a practice match and I don't want to be late. See ya." Estwynn soon ran off towards the building.

"Umm okay..." He trailed of as soon as Estwynn ran passed him. Moving through the cabins he soon saw the women's bathroom Phoebe was talking about. It was a medium sized building with faded pink walls as well as having five rectangular windows lined up in row behind the building with one of them emitting some mist. "How bad can it be." Leonard taught to himself as he walked passed the women's bathroom and headed straight into the woods.

As Leonard was traversing through the thick lining of trees he soon noticed Dylan walking towards him already fully clothed with his hair still wet. As the two approached each other, Dylan soon spoke up first.

"Mornin' if you're looking for the bathroom its just around the corner by those trees." Dylan pointed behind him with his thumb. Dylan's face showing that he wasn't all to amused at what he was pointing at.

"Umm okay, thanks." Leonard soon walked passed him with a somewhat skeptic look. As he walked around where Dylan pointed him to walk towards his jaw just dropped the moment he saw the bathroom. The men's bathroom was just a shady, run-down, wooden shack barely big enough to fit two people without even a single window. The only thing blocking the doorway was an old shower curtain that seemed to have been ripped at the bottom edge. "Oh you got to be fucking kidding me Chris..."

(Cabin 6: Paris and Blake's)

Inside the cabin was Blake sitting on one of the wooden chairs as he was shown tapping away at his phone. He was already wearing his normal clothing and on the table next to him was a plate with a half-eaten sandwich and some fries. As he was busy playing with his phone, the door soon creaked open with someone stepping inside. When Blake turned to see who it was, he suddenly looked away with his face slightly red for the person that stepped in was Paris who was dripping wet with a thick towel wrapped around her body.

"You know their is a thing called knocking? Ever heard of it?" Blake said a bit flustered.

"Why would I knock? This is where I'm also sleeping anyways." Paris walked towards the bunk beds and sat on the bottom bunk. "You wouldn't mind, do you?" Paris crossed her legs as she reached for her bag hanging from the top bunk.

"*Sigh* Just remove the sheets when you're done." Blake walked out of the Cabin with his phone and sandwitch in hand. As he closed the door behind him, he soon started walking towards the oval building. "What's with her deal anyways?" He took a bite out of his sandwich. "Might as well get some target practice in before the next challenge."

As he got inside the building, the room was filled with noise and flashing lights with the large monitor showcasing the practice match between Ginger and Estwynn already taking place. Standing right in-front of him were Lucette and Laren watching the match play out.

"Go Ginger!" Lucette cheered as the screen showed Ginger parrying a spear thrust from Estwynn. The latter's armor now were in the shade of blue with his face mask tinted in a light blue color. His weapon was now an arrow head spear. Estwynn then followed up his thrust with a sideward slash catching Ginger off-guard and knocking her to the side.

"Yeah! Don't give up now Estwynn!" Laren cheered as well. Ginger, regaining her balance, dodged away another spear thrust before countering with low leg sweep knocking Estwynn down. With the former now gaining the upper hand she soon stepped down on Estwynn's chest forcing him down some more before leaning down on her knee and mouthing the words 'GG'

"Woohoo! Go Ginger!" Lucette jumped in joy. Laren however, though disappointed, just turned to face Lucette with small smile. The next scene shown on the monitor was Ginger helping Estwynn up and shaking each others hands.

"Well, you win I guess." Laren said calmly. "I never should've doubted you."

"Hah, told you Ginger was better." Lucette smiled triumphantly.

"Hey, what's going on here?" Blake asked as he approached the two girls.

"Oh, hi Blake. Me and Laren here just had a bet to see which one was the better fighter." Lucette explained.

"What did you bet on?"

"We bet our dessert for tonight." Laren sighed.

"Yeah, more dessert for me!" Lucette exclaimed happily.

"I'll beat you next time." Laren gave off a determined look. The two just exchanged looks before the pods containing Ginger and Estwynn popped open. Both of them came out of the pods next to each other.

"Man, you really had me good." Said Estwynn as he got up from his pod. "Though in hindsight fighting you with a spear was a bad call on my end." He scratched the back of his head.

"Hey, you weren't half-bad yourself. Their were times you had me on the ropes too you know." Ginger grinned slightly. "Anyways, want to head back to the cafeteria? I haven't had breakfast yet to be honest." She giggled lightly.

"Fine. Needed a quick bite anyways after that battle." Estwynn replied with a small smile. As the two started walking towards the exit, they soon took notice of Blake standing right in-front of them.

"Oh, morning Blake." Ginger greeted. "What are you doing here?"

"Just wanted to get in some target practice before the next challenge." Blake answered. "So, was anyone else in their other than you two?"

"Yes actually. We saw Derek already in the virtual world before us." Estwynn pointed towards a pod in the far back of the room. The light on it was glowing red to show that it was being used. "We tried to talk him into joining us but he just walked away on us as if we weren't their." He explained.

"Did you manage to see where he went though?" Blake asked once more

"He entered one of the nine mazes. I think he entered the Dragoon's nest since that was the maze that was opened when we spawned in." Estwynn tired to recall as he looked back to the monitor. The screen only showed a far view of the maze entrance with the inside barely noticeable. "Why do you want to know though? Its not like he'll talk to you or anything.

"Like I said, I needed some target practice" Blake replied with a sly grin as he brushed passed the two. As he stood right in-front of one of the vacant pods, Blake soon looked back to face them. "Wait, how do I activate this though?"

"Oh, Chris said that they were set to automatically activate. You just need to step in." Ginger explained.

"Okay, thanks." Blake soon stepped inside the empty pod causing the glass pane to close in on him. After everything was setted up once more, he soon fell to a deep sleep only to wake up once again back into the virtual world. Checking himself, he soon took notice of the yellow chocobo symbol imprinted on to his left shoulder and the necklace of fire wrapped around his right wrist.

"Now, where is that...oh, their it is." Blake thought to himself as he searched around for the maze. As he approached the maze entrance, he soon felt a hot draft escaping from it the moment he got close. Now by the maze's doorway, he looked inside only to see that the walls were crumble and pouring with lava. "Wait, this isn't the Dragoon's nest." Blake said to himself as he entered the maze. "This is where the Gorgons are. What's he doing in here alone?" A curious thought entered his mind as he searched deeper into the maze.

As Blake walked deeper into the molten maze in search for Derek, thoughts were running through his mind thinking about what would happen to Derek if he didn't find him in time. Walking deeper in taking every possible turn and corner he could find, he suddenly found himself at a dead end.

"Damn." Blake shook his head as he kicked a small rock at the molten wall. As he turned around and was about to leave, a loud hissing noise stopped him in his tracks. Turning back around, he soon saw a large Gorgon towering over him as it slithered down the wall. "Shit! This is definitely not my day." Blake slowly backed up with his short swords crossed backhanded in-front of him.

The large Gorgon slowly slithering towards the lone boy, it let out a loud scream before lunging at him. Blake, readying for the worst, raised both his swords up in attempt to defend himself. As he stood their with his eyes closed preparing himself on what's to come, he soon realized nothing happened to him. Opening his eyes he soon saw Derek standing right in-front of him holding the Gorgon by it's neck.

"D-Derek?" Blake's eyes widened. Derek, ignoring Blake completely, let loose a series of powerful punches at the Gorgon before sending it crashing towards a the molten wall causing it to crumble down and crushing it. "Phew, thank god you're here Derek." Blake let out a breath of relief. Derek just let out a grunt before leaving Blake alone without even saying a word. "H-hey, wait up." He tried to follow Derek but soon stopped when something started glowing right behind him. As Blake looked behind him, the Gorgon's body started glowing before completely disappearing.

Curious, Blake approached the rubble and debris that was left behind only to find a black dagger with a long serrated blade and a dark wooden handle on the ground. As Blake picked up the weapon, an automated Chris voice started playing out.

"Congratulations Blake. You've earned the Obsidian Dirk. This weapon allows you to break any type of armor or shield but will break immediately upon contact with fire or ice." Chris's voice explained before ending.

"This seems useful." Blake inserted the dagger in his belt.

"Ahem, attention everyone." The real Chris's voice echoed out through maze. "Please be by the oval building within the hour. The next challenge is about to begin." He explained. "For those who are inside in virtual reality, take this portal for it would immediately send you back to the real world." A neon portal appeared right in-front of Blake. "That is all." He ended.

"Oh well, time to go." Blake hopped in the portal. The pod holding him in soon popped open with the white mist coming out before Blake stepped out. Inside the room with him was Chris along with Derek, Paris, Dylan, Phoebe, and Clint.

"I see one of my teammates already gaining a useful item for the challenge." Dylan gestured towards what he saw on the monitor. "To bad it has such an abuseable draw back."

"Hey, I just need to avoid anything Ice or Fire is all." Blake smirked.

"Well you better not touch yourself with it, hot shot." Paris laughed slightly. Blake just shook his head and palmed himself in the face. The glass doors soon opened letting in Ginger, Estwynn, and Lucette.

"Sorry if we're late." Estwtnn started as they approached. "Someone here just wouldn't stop eating cake." Estwynn looked towards Lucette with his arms crossed.

"Hey! Why only me? Ginger here was the one who stopped us on our way out to buy a bag marshmallows." Lucette pouted.

"N-no I didn't." Ginger said while chewing something in her mouth. She soon swallowed it afterwards.

"Hey, where's Laren? I thought she was with you guys?" Blake asked with his eye brow raised.

"Oh her? She said she was going to find Alice. She said that Alice was still in the cabins or something." Ginger shrugged. "Oh, speak of the devil." The next to get inside was Alice and Laren. The former however had a scowl on their face while their hair was still dripping wet and along with her clothes.

"Didn't I tell you not to bother me today? And besides, I heard the announcement as well. You didn't have to drag me out of the bathroom." Alice gave Laren a cold stare.

"Oh c'mon where's the fun in being alone? Having others with you is where the fun starts." Laren smiled back at her.

"*sigh* does anyone have a clean towel? Laren dragged me out of our cabin before I could even properly dry myself." Alice asked around. Chris just snapped his fingers for an intern to appear holding a towel and handing it to Alice before running off. "Thanks." She soon started drying off her hair.

The next people who got inside the room with them Tristan, Kazuo, and Nathan. Kazuo however just went inside shirtless and wearing red shorts while the other two were wearing their normal clothing. Kazuo's body was slightly lean with some muscle on him but otherwise he was pretty much average.

"Umm K-Kazuo, w-why are you sh-shirtless?" Phoebe asked as she looked away, her cheeks slightly red.

"Oooh, is the little Phoebe blushing?" Paris teased.

"I don't know. It kinda suits him." Lucette giggled. Ginger lightly smacked her at the back of her head. "Ow..."

"Eh, decided to sleep in is all." Kazuo shrugged. "I mean I could have worn a clean shirt but since we're going to be in virtual reality anyways I figured it wouldn't make much of a difference." He explained. Chris, looking not so amused, snapped his fingers for another intern to appear forcing down a white shirt on Kazuo.

"I'm hosting Total Drama here, not America's next top model." Chris said with his arms crossed.

"Fine. I give up." Kazuo said with grin before properly putting on his shirt. The next ones to enter the room were Janet, Kali, and Gelsey entering at the same time. The three of them appeared to be talking to each other as they got in only to notice almost everyone else was already their.

"Oh, hi everyone!" Gelsey waved and smiled at everyone in the room.

"Are we the last ones to arrive? Since by the looks of things it seems as though we're the last ones to get here." Janet asked as she scans the room.

"Nope. Leonard isn't here yet. Has anyone seen him though?" Chris asked no one in particular.

"Last I heard from him is that he was headed towards the bathroom." Estwynn thought back to their encounter.

"Yeah, I passed by him going towards it as well." Dylan added.

"Must still be taking a shower or something." Tristan shrugged. A few moments later the glass doors soon opened up with Leonard marching in with his arms crossed. Both of Leonards arms and some places of his face looked to have scratch marks all over it. As he approached everyone a horrid scent soon filled the room

"Umm what happened to you Jag?" Ginger asked looking a bit confused. "Ugh, and what's with the horrible smell?" She pinched her nose. Everyone else covered themselves up as well.

"A fricking skunk happened." Leonard said a bit angrily. "I was just taking a bath when this skunk suddenly entered the so called men's bathroom and attacked me." He glared at Chris.

"Aww poor Phoebe." Paris patted Phoebe's head. "It seems she can't spend the night with her boyfriend for now." She teased. Phoebe just fell silent and turned bright red from embarrassment.

"Oh just can it." Leonard said dismissively with his arms crossed.

"Oh my god Leonard. Just enter the pod already." Chris grimaced as he pinched his nose.

"Fine." Leonard went inside the nearest pod next to him. With him now safely inside the glass pane closed him and he soon fell asleep. Moments later the large screen soon came to life showing Leonard on the other side.

"Ugh, I can finally breath." Chris took in a deep breath. "Hey, Leonard. Can you hear me?" He called out.

"Yeah." Leonard's voice was heard through the speakers.

"Good. Now, onto the challenge" Chris turned around to face the other contestants. "Since this is the first team challenge we've decided to make it simple for you guys." He pressed a button on the panel to show a Golden sword with red jewels on the handle on the screen. "This here is Aurum, the Golden edge."

"Umm why are you showing us this?" Dylan asked with a skeptic look.

"Simple. For todays challenge is to simply steal this sword." The host smirked. Everyone's eyes widened with some taken aback on how simple it sounded. "Sounds easy, doesn't it?" He crossed his arms.

"Why do I get this feeling that their is more to this then just to simply steal the sword." Alice questioned.

"Oh that's because their is more to it." Chris grinned as he pressed on another button on the control panel. The image on screen zoomed out to reveal a large throne room shining in gold and silver. Sitting on the throne itself is the wielder of the sword wearing a complete set of shining golden plate armor with violet trimmings and the shoulder pieces spiking out. The helm he wore closely resembles a crown and has no face mask for everyone to see his piercing blue eyes. Surrounding the Knight on the throne were a line of paladins all wearing the same porcelain white plate armor with blue outlining.

"Everyone, this here is Kaiser. The quest's stage boss and wielder of the sword." Chris introduced. "To put things simple. Today's challenge will have you guys breaking through Kaiser's castle and stealing the sword from him." He explained.

"Sounds easy enough. We go in, beat him and his men, and take the sword." Ginger said confidently from the middle of the group.

"Oh just you wait." Chris smirked as he pressed another button. The image on the screen soon changed to an outside view of a large castle surrounded by thick stone walls and multiple tall towers. "This here is the castle you will all be sent to. Each team will have a different starting point." Chris pressed another button showing an over-head view of the castle. "The red dragons will start by the courtyard." The dragon symbol was shown to be placed by the front gate. The open area looked to be surrounded with thick lining of bushes and siege weapons.

"Not many places to hide don't you think?" Alice interjected.

"Don't worry, I can just throw away any guard that comes our way." Janet said confidently. "Oh right, I just remembered something. You haven't told me and Derek yet what our items does. We both got bracelets if I remember correctly" She tried to recall what she got.

"Hmm must have slipped my mind." Chris thought back. "Well in any case, it's called the bracelets of determination. As for the effects I think it had something to do about gaining "second wind" but I forgot majority of the details. You'll just have to find out during the challenge itself."

"Fair enough." Janet replied.

"Okay, back to the topic in hand. The Blue Nagas will start of here at the castle garden." Chris pointed towards the naga symbol. The symbol was placed on a large opened area filled with trees and flower beds and what looks to be a fountain in the middle.

"Its not half-bad actually. It looks quite manageable to say the least." Estwynn pointed out.

"Eh, I can work with it." Nathan shrugged.

"And lastly, the yellow chocobos will start of here at the barracks." Chris pointed towards the chocobo symbol placed behind a small building separate from the main castle settled on the far eastern.

"Wait, why do I feel like their is a joke about these placings somehow." Dylan said out loud.

"What do you mean?" Kali asked. "I don't see anything odd about these places."

"I don't know. I just feel like their was a certain idea behind these placements." Dylan scratched the back of his head in thought. Chris, hearing Dylan, just gave off a silent chuckle.

"Okay, now that you all know what to do. It's time for me to mention about a few mechanics of the challenge" Chris started. "First off, if you die you're out. Once you've 'died' you're automatically kicked out of virtual reality until the challenge ends. Second, if you get captured by any of the castle guards you are also kicked out of virtual reality. Third, they're are treasure chests scattered across castle. If you find them you may keep whatever is inside the chests. And lastly, to make things interesting, the person who manages to grab the sword first get's to keep it as well. That last mechanic isn't just for this challenge, it's for all future challenges to come." The room fell from mindless chatter to serious looks. Chris just gave off a sly grin.

"Clearly a weapon such as that has a drawback. Right?" Estwynn asked.

"Nope." Chris said simply. Whispers and tension started filling the room.

"So not only are we fighting off against the others but even amongst ourselves as well? Curious to see how the butterfly effect would play out." Kazuo gave himself an amused laugh.

"Finding a way to tap in to our greed huh? This season might as well be the most ruthless one yet" Tristan stated calmly. Everyone all looked at each other with mixed expressions on them.

"Now, once all of you are ready please get in the pods so that we may start." Chris sat down on his chair by the panel. Everyone soon after started entering each pod with some getting in the one closest to their teammates. As the last person got into there pod, all of the glass panes started closing in on them to prepare their transport back into the virtual world.

Chris, now alone in the room, turned to face the camera. "Well, their you have it folks. Our contestants are now back once more in the virtual world to take on today's challenge." Chris gave off a small smile. "Let's dive on in to see what they're up to." Chris grinned before pressing a button on the panel. The camera view soon shifted inside the virtual world over looking the large castle. The scene soon shifted once more to show the red dragons standing in the courtyard being surrounded by the castle guards along with arrows and ballistae aimed right at them.

"Drop your weapons and surrender now or be forced to face trial" The captain of the guard demanded from the safety of his men. The guard captain wore a full suit of metal armor with his face mask dropped down. He held in both his hands two silver broad swords glistening in the sun's light. The guards surrounding the red dragons all wore brown cloth armor with metal shoulder plates and gauntlets all wielding pointing spears at them.

"Chris just had to spawn us here." Alice sighed as she readied her bow. Her red gem started to glow

"Hey, were the red dragons. It's time we show to everyone that we are more then just a name." Janet held her spear high with both her hands glowing in dark purple energy. On her right wrist was a blood red bracelet glowing with energy

"Well then, let's see what would happen if I try my best this time around." Kazuo grinned as he drew out his blood sword instead. "But I want to do this with my new sword first." He laughed.

"Enough chitter chatter, let's just get this over with." Tristan said with a determined look as he held on tightly to his pipe wrench. Derek said nothing and just prepared himself in a fighting stance. On his left wrist was a similar bracelet to Janet's and was glowing as well. All six of them stood defiantly as they stare down each soldier.

"Fine, be that way." The guard captain says from under his breath. "Soldiers, take them out!" All the surrounding men charged at them with their spears raised high.

"Heh. Let the fun begin." Janet grinned as her power grew stronger.

* * *

The view soon shifted to another portion of the castle. Paris, Ginger, and Phoebe were shown running through the outside corridor of the castle. Chasing them were five fully armored knights with their shields raised high and swords to their sides. Ginger, running from behind the two, was taking shots at the knights following them but only managed to hit their shields before her needing to reload her gun.

"Dammit! I'm out of shots." Ginger cursed as she holstered her empty magigun. "I still think splitting up was a bad idea."She drew out her other gun and started taking shots. One of the shots managed to clip a knight by his left arm but just shrugged it off.

"Quickly, in their!" Paris pointed towards an open door. As Phoebe and Paris managed to run on inside, Ginger stopped for a moment to shoot a couple explosive rounds before quickly entering and slamming the door shut.

On the other side of the door was a large open area with a velvet carpet leading up towards a large set of stone stairs. Each of the walls beside them held two doorways each with different colored doors and hanging with two torches each.

"S-so what n-now?" Phoebe asked looking a bit shaken as she scans the room. As Paris was about to answer, a loud slamming noise came from the door they came from.

"In their!" Paris said silently as she pointed towards an opened brown door nearest to the stairs. The scene soon changed to reveal where the other blue nagas were. Clint, Estwynn, and Nathan were shown running through a narrow hallway inside the castle.

"Are the still chasing us?" Nathan asked for he was running in-between the two. Estwynn looking behind them saw nothing was their. Estwynn's armor this time around had red chest padding and a red cape. Attached to his waist was a sheathed sword with a silver metal handle and hilt.

"No. I think we lost them." Estwynn answered.

"Over here." Clint was shown standing in-front of an opened door gesturing for them to get inside. As the two managed to get in, Clint soon closed the door behind them. On the other side of the door they entered was a small and short pathway with only one door in-front of them. The door was made from both steel and wood but had no handle or knob or anything to grab on to and only had a keyhole.

"What do you think is in the other side?" Nathan asked a bit perplexed. Clint just gave him a shrug and Estwynn didn't have an answer either. Nathan looking quite curious just placed his hand on the door and gave it a slight push. As he pushed it to his surprise it was open. Pushing the door all the way open they were all surprised at the sight they saw on the other side.

"Whoa..." Was all Estwynn could say. Right in-front of them were two large golden chest standing in the midst of a room filled with gold and jewels. "That must be one of the chests Chris was talking about." Estwynn's voice sounded a bit excited.

"Theirs even two of them!" Nathan chimed in. "How lucky can we get?" As both Estwynn and Nathan were about to approach both chests, Clint suddenly pulled both of them back.

"Anything wrong, Clint?" Estwynn asked. Clint, not saying a word, just kept his eyes on the two chest giving them piercing looks. Reaching for an arrow in his quiver, he soon notched it and aimed straight at both of the chests.

"Umm Clint. What are you doing?" Nathan asked looking a bit confused. Not saying anything still, Clint shot his arrow in-between the two chests. With the arrow flying straight towards the chests, it suddenly split itself into five arrows heading towards the chests in a straight volley. As the arrows hit the two chests both of hem came to life with the lids opening showing razor sharp teeth and piercing dark purple eyes inside.

"Mimic trap. How predictable." Clint said calmly as he reached for another arrow. Both chests start hopping towards them with their mouths drooling. Estwynn and Nathan both drew out their weapons.

"Man, and I thought luck was already on our side." Nathan let out a sigh before charging at the two mimics followed by Estwynn.

* * *

The scene shifted to different part of the castle where the entire yellow chocobos were. They were all hiding inside an empty horse stable with Leonard standing by an opened window near the entrance keeping watch.

"Hey, are most of the guards gone?" Dylan asked in a hushed tone. Dylan was pacing back and fort in the middle of the stables.

"No. They're still out looking for us." Leonard replied as he spotted two crossbowmen walking passed.

"So tell me, why did you make us run away like that? You know we can handle them all easily." Blake questioned Dylan with a cold stare. Blake was sitting on the gate of an empty stable. Leaning on the wooden fence under him was his bow.

"Like I said, if we want to win this we have to make sure we suffer no loses." Dylan defended himself. "I've perfected a lot of RTS games to know how to play my cards right. No, not just right, perfectly." He glared back.

"News flash genius, we aren't in any video game. This place is just as real as the real world." Blake countered. "So don't think so highly of yourself just because you've completed a couple games." The prankster soon got up.

"Umm Blake, where are you going?" Gelsey asked as she was sitting next to him.

"Where else? I'm going straight into the castle." Blake slung the bow around his chest and back. "If you want to win the waiting game then fine. I'll be off doing the challenge." He soon brushed passed Dylan and headed straight for the gate.

"Fine. Go get yourself killed then." Dylan scoffed. "We'll see how things will play out." He just crossed his arms and glared. Blake, pausing for moment, raised up his hood before opening the gates of the stables slightly and making quick dash out.

"Hey, theirs one! Get him!" A loud voice called out from the outside. Two crossbowmen and one knight soon ran passed the stables and went after Blake.

"Should we go and help him?" Gelsey asked, looking a bit concerned.

"No. We're just wasting our resources if we did." Dylan said dismissively

"What if he gets killed?"

"So what? He chose to run off like. His death is no longer our problem." Dylan glared at the girl. Gelsey just backed off kept quiet.

"Hey, those were the last guards." Leonard called out.

"Are you sure?" Dylan asked.

"Yeah, I took a quick look outside and no other guards were around. Even the ones on the walls are gone." Leonard told what he saw.

"Good. The other teams must have drawn them out." Dylan smirked. "C'mon, it's time we give the king a visit."

* * *

The scene soon returned to where the red dragons were. The sounds of steel clashing and arrows flying filled the area as their long battle went on. All over where the red dragons stood their ground were piles of broken swords and spears all drenched in blood.

"Fire!" The guard captain commanded. Two ballistae fired their shots at the red dragons. Tristan, standing in the far back, shot multiple cannon shots at the giant arrows protecting them from the attack. Firing arrows next to him was Alice with her bow glowing a feint blue light. Standing right behind her was Laren with her pendent glowing in the same color.

"Nice shot Tristan." Janet praised as she drove her spear into the chest of a knight. She soon pushed the dead body back with her gravity push to send it flying towards a small group of soldiers. Standing right beside her was Kazuo fighting off a couple swordsmen with his sword. Fighting far ahead of them was Derek taking on a group of soldiers on his own, skillfully taking each one out without much problem

"Man, fighting with a sword is hard." Kazuo parried away a slash. He soon countered with a sideward slash only knocking back the soldier. "Not to mention this sword can't even penetrate through thick armor." Kazuo blocked a downward strike.

"What do you mean thick? They're just wearing leather and thin plating." Janet threw her dagger at a charging soldier before kicking him down and driving her spear through his chest. "See." Blood started pooling around the body.

"Heh. Well, Chris mentioned that this sword can't cut through anything other than cloth armor." Kazuo dodged away from a spear thrust before disarming the soldier with a quick swipe to the wrists with his sword.

"Then why take it then?" Janet knocked back a group of soldiers with a geyser of pure cosmic energy.

"Well, that's because this sword can completely drain the opponents energy if it manages to hit someone." Kazuo soon managed to knock the soldier down. "Watch." Kazuo kicked away the soldier's helm and drove his sword onto his neck killing him instantly. "Oh, never mind."

"See, told you I was useful." Laren smiled as she was just standing behind Alice.

"*sigh* Fine. I can give you that." Alice fired an arrow glowing with ice magic. "But why enchant my bow with ice magic though?" She fired another frozen shot. The arrow hitting a charging soldier was soon frozen in ice completely stopping him in place. Alice fired another arrow to shatter the frozen soldier into pieces.

"It's by random chance actually." Laren ducked an oncoming arrow. "To your left. Above the wall." She directed where the arrow came from. Alice pointing her bow towards where Laren pointed towards soon saw the bowman and fired. "Nice shot."

"What do you mean by random chance?" Alice readied a couple arrows. "Can't you control it?" She fired a quick volley of frozen arrows at a group of soldiers.

"Not really. The buff I can give changes every hour or so. It depends on what light my pendent is emitting." Laren explained. "On your right." She pointed.

"I got it." Tristan announced as he threw his pipe wrench like a boomerang knocking out the soldier rushing towards them. The pipe wrench soon bounced back towards Tristan in which he easily caught.

As the fighting ensues with the red dragons fighting off every soldier with ease. The enemies ranks started to slowly deplete with only the guard captain and couple of handful of soldiers were left defending the castle courtyard. As more of what remains of the guard captain's front line drop down dead, worriedness started creeping up on him for this battle is more than lost.

"Sir! We're out of arrows!" One of the soldiers operating the ballistae called out as he approached

"I see." The guard captain said with a depressed look. "Tell what remains of our men to retreat back into the castle." Janet shoved her spear down onto another soldier's chest. "I'll hold them off as long as I can." He held on to both his swords tightly. "That's an order."

The soldier looking a bit hesitant just gave a the guard captain a salute. "Yes sir!" The soldier said before running off. The remaining forces soon withdrew and headed back inside the castle.

With the red dragon's final push, they were all able to kill off the remaining soldiers that were left in the front line. Seeing their retreat, the red dragons all started charging straight towards the castle doors with little to no resistance at all. As they were half way across the courtyard, they soon took notice off the guard captain standing defiantly right in-front of them with one sword placed on his shoulder while the other he held low on one hand.

"This is as far as you'll all go." The guard captain said imposingly as he stared straight at them. All of them stopped in their tracks and raised their up their weaponry except for Alice. Alice, standing behind everyone, managed to slip away from the group and entered in her stealth to get around the captain and move on ahead.

"Umm Alice?" Laren softly as she noticed Alice was gone. Everyone else didn't seem to notice.

"Heh, tired of letting all of your soldiers do all the dirty work for you?" Janet taunted.

"Oh no. Just wanted to send in a welcoming party is all." The guard captain replied. "Since that you're all hear, might as well greet you all personally." He readied both his silver swords. "Now, who wants to start?" He smirked.

* * *

The scene returned to where Paris and Phoebe were. They were both shown running down a narrow hallway with doors on one side and windows on the other. Chasing behind them were two of Kaiser's white paladins with their dark blue capes flowing behind them.

"Why did Ginger do that? We could've...dammit!" Paris gritted her teeth she kept her eyes straight ahead of them.

"D-don't worry, Ginger l-looks strong. Sh-she can handle h-herself. R-right?" Phoebe looked to be almost out of breath as she could barely keep up.

"Lets just hope so." Both her and Phoebe turned around the corner at the end of hallway. As they kept on running through the long hallway, it was the end of the line for them for they met up with a dead-end at the end of the hall. "Dammit!" Paris cursed as she tried to run back but was soon stopped when the paladins were already their.

"Um, wh-what now?" Phoebe looked terrified as she raised her staff up to her chest and slowly backed up. Paris, seeing no other options left, drew out her rapier and raised it right in-front of her.

"Stand back Phoebe." Paris blocked off Phoebe with her left arm. "This is going to get messy." She said with a serious tone. Phoebe letting out a nod stood as far back as she could.

As the first paladin charged in with both his sword and shield raised, the paladin soon went in for a sideward slash at Paris. The latter, seeing the attack incoming, decided to block the large sword with her rapier but was quickly overpowered for the force of the attack shoved her aside and sent her slamming hard to the stone wall beside her. The paladin followed up his attack with a strong kick to her stomach using his metal greaves causing Paris to buckle over in pain. Paris coughed out some blood as well some dripping through her mouth before sliding down onto the cold stone floor.

"NO!" Phoebe cried out as she saw her ally get knocked out. The paladin standing over Paris's body raised his sword arm up once more to finish her off. As the paladin was about to finish off Paris, his sword was swing was suddenly stopped by a lance. Protecting Paris from the paladin's attack was the male porcelain doll with his lance blocking the sword. "S-stop it!" Phoebe cried out once more with tears forming in her closed eyes.

The male doll seeing his opening flicked away at the paladin's sword with his lance and went in for a jab to his chest. Raising his shield up, the paladin managed to block the attack for a moment but the attack still went through for it penetrated through the shield and stabbing him in his chest. With the paladin dropping down to his knees, blood dripping from his chest, the doll continued to drive his lance deeper in to the paladin's chest until it was forced to pierce through the paladin's back; blood dripping from the exposed tip.

"Urg...ahh..." The paladin dropped dead on the ground with the lance still deep in his chest and blood pooling all over. Forcefully pulling the spear out of the dead corpse's chest caused blood to splatter everywhere marking the stone walls with a crimson color. With only one paladin left, the doll started charging up his lance causing it to spin like a drill before charging in.

The last paladin taking his stand raised his sword high with his shield to his chest before charging on in towards the doll. With the two meeting each other head on, the doll lunged first with his lance causing it to collide with the paladin's shield and breaking it instantly upon impact. The paladin now exposed, the doll drove his lance straight towards the paladin's abdomen and rammed him hard onto the back wall pinning him their. The lance still drilling into the paladin's stomach piece, blood started flying every where until the paladin finally lay limp on the wall. With the last paladin now dead, the doll pulled out his lance, dropping the paladin onto the ground, before dispersing into fragments of light for the battle is now over.

Phoebe, seeing both assailants dead, wiped away her tears and started rushing towards the downed dancer. With the doll faced girl now beside her companion, she frantically shook her body in attempt to wake her up.

"H-hey, Wake up!" Phoebe said while shaking Paris; her eyes still swelling with tears. After a few moments had passed Paris soon woke up with blood still dripping from her mouth.

"Ugh...Ph-Phoebe?" Paris attempted to get up but still keeled over for the pain in her stomach was to much. Paris soon covered up her mouth as she coughed up more blood with a lot of it dripping through her fingers.

As she scanned around the hall she soon took notice of the two paladins laying dead on the floor with blood coating the walls. "Wh-what happened here?" She said weakly as she tried to get up once more.

Phoebe slung Paris's arm around her neck and shoulders in attempt to provide some support. With the latter now up on her feet, Phoebe soon explained what had happened.

"Y-you got knocked out and the kn-knight was about to finish y-you off." She said sobbing a bit. "I d-din't know w-what to do so I t-tried to stop them." Paris looked around to see once more the massacre that happened.

"It seems you did much more then stop them." She smiled weakly. "Good job." She petted Phoebe's head. "C'mon, lets get out of here. I don't think I have the strength to even heal myself." She chuckled slightly. The two soon proceeded to slowly make their way out of the castle.

The scene soon went back to where Clint, Estwynn, and Nathan were. They were all shown still fighting off against the two mimics they encountered earlier. Estwynn was fighting off one Mimic on his own while the other two were fighting off the other Mimic together.

"Take this!" Estwynn yelled as he chopped down on the Mimic he was fighting with his battle axe. Estwynn was currently transformed into his yellow version.

"Grah!" The Mimic let out a scream as the blade of the axe made a deep break into it's golden 'head'. Estwynn pulling the blade out forcefully, small golden fragments started bursting out through the large crack it made. With the Mimic now dazed, Estwynn soon went in for a powerful side swing sending the Mimic crashing on the stone wall beside them before breaking into two separate pieces.

"Man, that was rough." Estwynn balanced his axe on his right shoulder. "How are you two doing over their?" He looked towards Nathan and Clint. The former was shown blocking off the gaping mouth of the last Mimic with his Katana while the latter was aiming another arrow at it.

"What do you think?" Nathan said a bit harshly as he tried his best to stop the Mimic from biting down on him. With a strong push, he was soon able to push the Mimic back away from him. Taking his opening, Clint fired another straight volley of arrows similar to what he did before. The arrows all hitting, the Mimic let out a pain filled scream before lunging at them with it's mouth wide open.

"Now!" Clint called out as the Mimic got close. With a nod of his head, Nathan charged at the Mimic before swiftly swinging his Katana sideways. As the two beings passed by each other, Nathan sheathed his Katana for some added dramatic effect just before the lid of the Mimic came sliding off and onto the ground.

"Are you seriously going to do that everytime you do a finisher?" Estwynn said jokingly. "You do know it's going to get repetitive after a while. Right?" Estwynn smirked but wasn't obvious.

"Well so does yelling 'Phase shift' every time." Nathan replied with a side grin.

"Hey! It's much more immersive for the viewers that way." Estwynn defended himself. "And besides, it sounds cool hehe." He chuckled slightly.

"Whatever." Nathan laughed in as well. As the two were busy talking to each other, Clint approached one of the broken Mimics and inspected it further. As he got close, the broken pieces soon started glowing brightly as sparkles started flowing away from it.

"Guys." Clint called out in a calm manner. The two hearing his call soon noticed the bright glowing as well.

"Hey, that one too." Estwynn pointed towards the Mimic he smashed. As the two broken Mimics glow brightly, they were both soon enveloped in a piercing light forcing them to shield their eyes. With light getting brighter and brighter the broken pieces soon started molding and shaping themselves. The light now slowly dying down the two pieces finally materialized into two separate weaponry; one being a rapier while the other was cutlass. The rapier had a long slender dark blue blade with a silver colored handle and hilt and was formed from the broken pieces of the Mimic Nathan and Clint defeated. The cutlass's curved blade was colored in a reflective crimson with the handle and hilt being a in light bronze color and was formed from the Mimic that Estwynn smashed.

"Congratulations you three." Chris's voice was suddenly heard inside the room. "The three of you earned these two swords for defeating the two Mimics!" His voice exclaimed. "The rapier you see before you is named Luciel the Cobalt Rapier. The wielder of this sword grants them the ability to parry almost any attack with ease. The other sword is named Angelica the Crimson Cutlass. This saber is laced with deadly poison that will slowly and painfully eat away at anyone's health." Chris ended.

"But theirs three of us and we all helped in killing them off. How does that work?" Estwynn questioned as he looked between the two swords.

"That's for the three of you to decide." Chris laughed maniacally before his voice slowly trailed off. The three left on their own just looked at each other.

"Man, Tristan was right. This season will really test if we value our greed over our allies." Nathan crossed his arms. "So, who's getting what?"

"Well, even though these two weapons are really good, I have no need for them. I basically carry around four different weapons anyways." Estwynn motioned for his axe. "So it's up to you two to decide on who get's what."

"I see." Nathan looked down in thought. "Clint, what do you suggest?" He looked towards Clint. Clint standing in thought with both arms crossed just glanced at the two swords before looking towards Nathan. After a while of thinking, he soon spoke up.

"Nathan. You received the Collar of Pride yesterday. Right?" Clint asked.

"Yeah." Nathan nodded before pulling down on his hood to reveal the collar already on his neck. The blue jewel on it glimmering ever so slightly. "It serves me no purpose to be honest." He let out a sigh.

"I see. You can have the rapier then." Clint walked towards the cutlass. "It will benefit you more then this thing will." He strapped the cutlass on to his belt.

"Wait, how come?" Nathan asked as he picked up the rapier. "Does anyone else have a rapier on them?" He thought back to what the others held.

"Yeah. Paris had a rapier on her. Didn't you notice?" Estwynn answered instead. Nathan just shook his head is response. "Well, now you know. At least you get to use your item now, I still don't get what Chris meant about 'fixing' things."

"I guess you're right." Nathan strapped his rapier on to his belt. "Albeit a bit situational since Paris has to be here. Anyways, lets head on out of here before the others think we died or something." The three soon proceeded to continue on searching for the throne room.

* * *

The scene changed once more to a different location of the castle where the yellow chocobos were, except for Blake. They were all seen fighting off against Kaiser's paladins defending the doors to the throne room. High balconies were overlooking their area while rows of tall windows lined the walls on each side of the room. Fighting in the front of the group were Leonard, Kali, and Dylan taking on the brunt of the throne rooms defenses while Gelsey and Lucette were hanging in the back.

"Ahhh!" Kali yelled as she was bashed by one of paladin's shield knocking her down. With the paladin now towering over her, the paladin was about to strike her down when a ball of dark magic suddenly struck the paladin first shrouding him in a dark mist.

"Phew, that was close." Gelsey said as she ran towards Kali. Her wand was pulsing with dark magic as she neared. "You okay?" Gelsey reached out her hand.

"Yeah. Thanks." Kali took Gelsey's hand and got up. As the dark mist clears, the paladin was shown to still be standing their with his shield raised high with only having a couple burn marks on it. "Our job isn't done yet though." Kali swung at the paladin with sword.

Seeing the attack coming, the paladin blocked of Kali's sword swing with his and the two were left in a blade lock. While the two were busy parrying and blocking each others swings as they fight over dominance, Gelsey was busy preparing another spell as her body was pulsing with dark magic. With her preparations complete, Gelsey soon let loose a fury of dark bolts of lighting towards the paladin.

"Kali get out of the way!" Gelsey warned just before she let lose her attack. Hearing her call, Kali was able to jump out of the way from Gelsey's attack in which landed a direct hit on the now exposed paladin. With the paladin being shocked by the constant bolts of lighting, Kali was able to run around behind the paladin with her blade on the ready to lunge at him from behind.

"Hah!" Kali yelled as she drove the tip of her sword onto the lower back of the paladin forcing the blade to pop out from the other end. Letting out a pain filled scream the paladin soon fell down onto his knees before sliding right off of Kali's blade and falling hard onto the ground with blood pooling right under him. "That was a rush hehe." She let out a deep breath.

"Yeah." Gelsey nodded.

Meanwhile, the fight that was taking place the same time as theirs was Leonard taking on a pair of paladins on his own. He held his Naginata up in a guard stance with the blade pointing towards them as one of the paladins approached. Fighting across from him was Dylan who was fighting off against a paladin of his own. He was stuck in a sword lock against the paladin he was against.

"Ha!" Leonard swung his naginata wildly at the paladin. The paladin, raising his shield, managed to endure Leonard's attack. The paladin retaliated back with a quick jab aimed right for his stomach in which managed to pierce through Leonard's armor as well as forcing him to drop his weapon in the process. "Gah! Get off!" He roared in pain as he grabbed on to the blade in attempt to stop the paladin from pushing any further. Leonard was soon forced down on to one knee as the struggle continued.

"Jag!" Lucette yelled as he saw her teammate struggling. Quickly raising up her staff, it soon started glowing in a soothing green light shining throughout the open hall. A second later the light from her staff started pulsating outwards soon enveloping Leonard in the green light. With the light shrouding Leonard, he was slowly able to regain some of his strength back prompting him to get back up.

"Haaaa!" Leonard yelled as he pulled the blade out; some blood traced the stone floor beneath it. With the blade now pulled out from him, Leonard delivered a strong kick to the paladins stomach area causing the paladin to get knocked back. Quickly pulling out one of his knives, he soon leapt towards the downed paladin and drove his knife onto the paladins chest as he landed on him in a crouched position. The paladin just squirmed and struggled for a bit before dying on the spot.

"Jag look out!" Lucette screamed. Looking up now, Leonard was suddenly bashed in the face by the other paladin's shield knocking him to the side. With Leonard now down, the paladin stomped hard on his chest before finishing him off with a quick swing to his neck. Leonard's virtual version soon flickered out of the virtual world leaving only a scattered trail of blood. "AAAAH!" Lucette screamed for help as the paladin came up to her with his sword on the ready.

"Lucette?" Dylan turned his head slightly towards her as he was still locked blades with the paladin. He soon took notice of Lucette being backed up underneath the balcony by a another paladin with Leonard nowhere to be found. With the paladin drawing in closer and closer to Lucette, Dylan soon broke away from his opponent and charged towards the other paladin instead.

"Aaaah!" Lucette cowered in fear as she was backed up against a wall with her staff raised to her chest in attempt to protect herself. With the paladin now towering over her, his shadow casting over her, he raised his sword high to strike her down. As Lucette tightly closed her eyes in anticipation for the worst, she soon heard a clanging sound. Opening her eyes she could Dylan standing right in-front of her with his sword blocking the attack.

"Go!" Dylan commanded as he tried his best to push the paladin back. Lucette a lost for words just nodded and soon ran off away from both of them and into safety. With Lucette now gone from behind him, he soon let lose of his stance and disappeared into the paladin's shadow. Acting a bit startled, the paladin turned around in attempt to find him but was off no use for Dylan was gone. "Looking for something?" Dylan's voice whispered from behind him. Wouldn't even having enough time to react, he was suddenly struck from behind, letting out a short scream, before falling dead on the ground.

Dylan letting out a deep breath drove his sword onto the stone flooring in attempt to balance on it for support. A second later he soon heard another paladin dropping onto the ground with a metallic clang. As he turned he could see that Kali and Gelsey were done with there opponent.

"One more to go." Dylan eyed the last paladin left in the room. Picking up his sword, he soon charged towards the remaining paladin with his sword raised high glowing in dark energy. As he was about to lock blades with the last paladin, Dylan was suddenly stricken by an arrow piercing him the back from out of nowhere. "Ack..." The arrow hitting him caused Dylan to get interrupted from his charge allowing the paladin to swiftly finish him off with a quick slash to the neck. Dylan's body suddenly flickered out the moment the paladin stricken him.

Everyone that remained seeing what happened couldn't help but let out gasps for how shocking the event was. Looking around the place they soon took notice of Alice standing on the railings of the balcony with her bow drawn out.

"Tsk, it seems that I've missed." Alice said calmly. "Missed his head at least." She laughed silently. She notched another arrow. "Well, time to finish him off." She let loose her arrow before entering in her stealth. As the arrow was flying Alice managed to swiftly get around the paladin with her dagger drawn. The paladin blocking the arrow with his shield suddenly felt a sudden pain at the back of his neck before falling down on to the ground with Alice's dagger jabbed at his neck.

"I don't know how you guys are having such a hard time dealing with these idiots." She pulled out her dagger from the paladin's neck. She wiped off the blood dripping from the blade before placing it back in it's sheath. "Oh well, time to finish of this challenge but first..." She jumped into the shadows to enter in her stealth.

As the three remaining girls cautiously looked around the blood stained room, fear and tension creeping up on them as they anticipate for Alice's next move. After a while of fearful waiting Alice soon struck down Lucette with a quick jab to her back before forcefully pulling it out and kicking her down. Lucette's body soon flickered out the moment it hit the floor.

"Now, who's next?" Alice grinned. The two remaining yellow chocobo's just braced themselves on what's to come.

* * *

The scene changed to reveal Blake running up a spiral stair case, metallic boots can be heard climbing up from down below. Running up the stairs as fast as he can Blake took quick glimpse down below to see how far ahead he was. Looking down he soon took notice of a crossbowman aiming his crossbow at him.

"Shit." Blake uttered out as he narrowly dodged the crossbow bolt. He continued on running up the spiral stairs. As kept on running he could finally see the end just a above him getting close.

"Over here. Quickly!" A female's voice called out to him as he was a couple of feet away. As Blake finally managed to reach the top of the stair case, he soon ran passed the door being held open by Ginger.

"Thanks." Blake said the moment he passed by. Ginger quickly closed the door behind them. The scene zoomed out a bit to reveal the two of them running across a long narrow bridge connecting two tall towers. "Hurry! We're almost their!" Blake said while he pointed towards the other tower. As the two reached the half-way point of the long bridge, the door on the other side soon busted open revealing a couple knights closing in on them.

"Dammit!" Blake said as he stopped them both. Blake tried to back up and turn but Ginger stopped him.

"Uhh Blake, we have more of a problem here!" Ginger pointed out as the knights and crossbowmen that were chasing them was soon insight on the other side. With nowhere else left to go both of them just stood back-to-back with their weapons drawn as they faced off against both fronts.

"To be honest I never really expected to be in a situation like this early on. Especially with an enemy." Blake grinned as he pulled back the string of his bow. A blazing arrow soon materialized already notched on to his bow.

"Yeah? Me neither." Ginger drew out both her guns. Both her guns merged once again to form into a rifle once more.

"You know, I could've killed you right then and their." Blake said as both sides closed in on them. "Seeing that we're from opposite teams and all."

"Really now." Ginger chuckled lightly. "I doubt it." She grinned. One knight from each side soon broke away from their respective groups and charged at them. "Are you ready or are you chicken?"

"Oh please, sing me a song once we're done here Ariel." Blake grinned as he let lose his arrow. The arrow hitting the shield of the knight soon ignited and coated him in flames quickly spreading throughout his body. The knight soon fell off the bridge in a flaming panic.

Behind him Ginger took careful aim with her rifle on the ready. As the knight charged in close with his shield raised high in-front of him, Ginger pulled on the trigger letting lose a powerful purple energy blast ripping through the knight's shield and hitting the him directly on the chest. After a second had passed the energy blast died down leaving only a clean hole through the knight's shield and chest piece. The knight soon fell off the side of the bridge moments later.

The two knights now gone from where they charged, both fronts started charging in on them with their shields raised high and the sound of metallic boots clanging on stone steps echoed throughout the area.

"Well, here comes the fun part." Blake let lose another arrow only this time it was sparking with electricity. The arrow hitting the knight in-front sent a chain of electricity shocking everyone in the line. He soon followed up the attack with a volley of crystalline arrows but instead of shooting it straight at them he shot it in an arc for it to rain down on them instead. With the chain of electricity ending all the knights simultaneously dropped down dead while others fell of the sides.

"Yeah." Ginger replied as she aimed another shot. She soon pulled back on the trigger and let out another powerful energy blast piercing through the line of knights. As the attack ended with each knight receiving a direct hit they all fell down one by one leaving a bloody mess all over. "What about you boys. Want to come over?" She grinned as she looked towards the two crossbowmen across the other side. Both of them ran back down the stairs. With all the knights dead and no one else around, the bridge fell in silence as the two just stand their.

"So, what now?" Blake asked as slung his bow around his chest and back.

"I don't know. Want to test out that whole theory of yours about killing me?" Ginger said with a small smile. "I mean we do have the perfect battle field." She added. Blake just laughed.

"Maybe some other time." Blake let out a chuckle. "Anyways, where to now? This place could be another portion of the maze to be honest." He smiled. Ginger just laughed slightly.

"Lets start with heading down stairs first." Ginger gave Blake a pat on the shoulder as she walked passed him. Blake soon followed.

* * *

The scene zoomed out and panned away from the two before showcasing an aerial view of the courtyard and zooming in close. As the scene got closer it soon showed that only Derek, Kazuo, and Janet were left standing facing off against the guard captain. The captain was shown pulling his silver sword slowly from Tristan's chest with blood dripping the moment it was pulled out. Tristan's body soon flickered out.

"Hahaha...Is that the best all of you got?" The captain said mockingly as he faced the three remaining red dragons. "And to think you wanted to go against Kaiser." He shook his head.

Janet, looking very exhausted and beaten, had one arm wrapped around her stomach and side while the other held on tightly to her spear. She bit the bottom of her lip before speaking up.

"Don't...underestimate us..." She said weakly as she held on to her spear tight. Standing right beside her was Derek who looked equally exhausted as well. He grabbed on tightly to his right arm for it appeared broken and limp for it just swung their with blood trickling down from it. Behind them was Kazuo who looked more badly injured then two for his robes were completely tattered with blood stains all over. He had multiple bruises all over the his body and face along with having a pained expression on but he was oddly smiling.

"Oh please, you lot could barely stand up. Just surrender now and I'll make sure your execution wouldn't be as painful." The captain laughed a bit maniacally. Janet gritting her teeth just charged at him all the while dragging her spear. "Then so be it." The captain lunged at her with his silver sword and completely piercing through her body.

As Janet slowly started to lose consciousness and her body started slowly flickering away her bracelet started to glow brightly keeping her body from fading away for a short while. With her bracelet glowing she gain a sudden surge of energy just enough for her to shove her spear through the captain's stomach area.

"Urg...ugh...how?" He glared at Janet before kicking her away. As her body fell she soon started flickering away once more. The captain soon pulled out the spear from his gut as blood started to gush out. "Damn...you.." He turned his gaze towards the remaining two.

"Interesting, who knew her bracelet can do that?" Kazuo pondered as he still held up his smile. "I wonder if yours can do the same." He looked towards Derek. The later just ignored him as he pulled out his flail from his belt. "Eager to find out huh?" Kazuo looked a bit amused.

"You think something like that is enough to stop me? Well come at me then!" The captain roared as he held out both swords. He soon started charging towards Derek with both swords raised.

As the captain neared, Derek took in a deep breath in order to enter in a state of focus. Keeping himself calmed and focused, his perspective on everything changed for things started to look a lot slower. Reacting fast, Derek was able to land a clean blow to the captain's wounded area before following up his strike with a series of blows to the captain's head and chest. With the final swing of his flail, the captain was soon knocked down with the last blow landing on the back of his head.

"Hmm...ugh..." He let out a final grunt before laying still on the ground unconscious. Derek, picking up on of the swords, was about to finish him off when Kazuo suddenly interrupted him.

"Okay, that's enough. Time to go." Kazuo said cheerily as he wiped away some blood and spit from the bottom of his lip. He soon started walking of casually towards the castle entrance but looked to be limping just slightly. "And besides..." He stopped for a moment. "It's not like he can do anything in that condition." Kazuo started walking off once more.

"Hmph." Derek let out as he dropped the sword from his hand. He soon left the captain alone bleeding away from his open wound. As the pair neared the large doors of the castle, they soon took a pause by the foot of it to take in for the moment on what's going to happen next. Taking in a deep breath Kazuo placed the palm of his hand on the door.

"Well, here we go." Kazuo chuckled slightly as he pushed on the door. To his surprise, it opened without much resistance. "Hmm, I wonder if Alice abandoning us is what caused this." He said as he took a pause from pushing the door completely opened. Continuing to push the door open, Derek was taken a back a bit for what they saw inside except for Kazuo who just brushed it off. "Hmm, it might as well be."

Inside the castle lay a set of curving carpeted stairs leading towards a large set of doors on the second floor. Ahead of them and beneath the stairs are another set of doors only this time they were opened slightly and looked to lead to another room deeper in. Around them were tall pillars holding the second floor above them with each pillar having intricate carvings and torches hanging from each one. In the middle lay a fountain with a knight statue towering over them

The interior may look impressive but what took them by surprise is what lay inside the grand room. Inside lay dead bodies of soldiers with blood and arrows ruining the once grand scene. Everywhere they looked a dead soldier could be seen slumped down on to the ground or lay hanging from a wall or pillar by arrows. The heavy stench of blood riddled the room almost forcing both of them to gag up.

"So, you think Alice did all this?" Said Kazuo as he approached the fountain. As he got close he took a look at what's inside. "Hmm not even a single coin." He shook his head. "Unless you count this helm." He pulled out a silver helmet with the face mask broken out of the water. "Oh well, lets head on forth to meet the king." He dropped the helmet back in creating a small splash of water. Kazuo soon started walking all casually towards the opened set of doors with Derek trailing behind.

With the two getting closer to the opened doors, they could suddenly hear voices from the other side along with steel clashing with one another. The two of them now by the front of the doors suddenly saw a figure move swiftly pass the small opening of the door.

"It seems who ever did this is still inside." Kazuo smiled as he pushed the door open.

Opening the doors both of them could see Kali and Alice standing in the middle of the room with their blades locked against each other. Standing behind Kali was Gelsey who was leaning against the wall with her hand pressed on to her side for blood was noticeably pouring out from it. Both girls failing to notice Derek and Kazuo pulled their blades back before swinging at each other once more.

"Heh, surprise you can still keep up." Alice said as her dagger met with Kali's blade creating a clanging sound. "And I thouht someone like Blake or Dylan might prove a challenge." She grinned

"Well, I guess you thought wrong then." Kali replied as she pushed Alice back. The later was able to hold her ground and force Kali back.

"Lets prove you wrong then." Alice dropped her dagger and quickly catching it with her other hand. She quickly stepped off to the allowing her to dodge Kali's blade as well as force her to move forward due to Kali's momentum. With Alice now off to Kali's side she swept away at Kali's right leg with her dagger causing Kali to drop.

"Aaaaah." Kali dropped on to her knee right with blood pouring through her hips. She gritted her teeth in pain due to the stinging sensation she felt. Alice just tossed and flipped her dagger around all the while laughing silently to herself.

"Well, it looks like you were the one who thought wrong." Alice grinned as she caught her dagger. Flipping her dagger around for it be held backhanded, she pulled arm back and raised her dagger. "Good night." Alice swung her dagger.

"Kali...nooo..." Gelsey called out weakly for she couldn't help but watch.

As Alice was about to finish Kali off, a pillar of flames suddenly engulfed Alice. "Huh, what?" Alice looked around in surprise for an answer but the pillar of flames was blocking her away from everything. With the pillar receding slowly, Alice could now see who casted that spell. "Kazuo? What the fuck do you think you're doing!" She glared at him. Kazuo held in his hands his spell book that was emitting a bright orange light.

"I don't know really. Just wanted to know what would happen if stop you before getting the final blow." Kazuo shrugged.

"We're in the same god damn team for crying out loud!"

"Exactly." Kazuo grinned. "Which makes things a lot more interesting." He laughed.

"Why you." Alice was about to charge at him but the flames started to intensify making her stop. "The moment I get out of here I'm going to-aaah." The flames closed in on her.

"Oh well, got to go. I don't want to be late for my rendezvous with death." Kazuo let out a small grin. He soon walked passed Alice and Kali and was now in-front of the throne room's doors. Taking a pause, he looked back to face Derek who was still standing by the doorway. "Are you going to help me or not?" Derek just gave him a cold stare. "As expected." He chuckled lightly. "See you guys on the other side." He pushed the door open.

As he pushed opened the throne room's doors a bright light escaped from the opening Kazuo made. With the doors fully opened the lights died to reveal a large hall with tall stone pillars providing support from each side. The middle of the room lay a long velvet carpet with diamond shaped patterns leading all the way to the other end of the hall. At the end of hall lay the throne raised up by a couple steps and two large windows beaming in sunlight.

Sitting carelessly and laid back on the throne was Kaiser with one arm under his chin while the other lay on top of his golden sword balancing on it's tip. The sword the knight king held glimmered in the sunlight that beamed down on it radiating with golden light. Seeing Kazuo slowly approaching, Kaiser just stared at him with his piercing blue-eyes as Kazuo slowly approached. Kazuo now about half-way across the hall, Kaiser tapped on the floor with his sword signaling Kazuo to stop.

"You know, this is usually the part where the final cut scene takes place with the final boss monologues but who in this day and age still watches them anyways." Kazuo gave himself an amused chuckle. "Lets just cut to the chase already and get the final boss fight going." Kazuo started flipping the pages of his spell book and soon started emitting a bright array of lights.

Letting out a soft grunt Kaiser stood up from his throne raising his sword and placing it on his shoulder. His golden armor radiating in the suns rays. Walking down the steps his violet cape flowed and swayed gently with each of his steps. Now by the foot of the stairs Kaiser held out his sword tightly with both hands as he stares straight at Kazuo.

"Want me to do the first move huh? Okay." Kazuo grinned. As he flipped through the pages of his book, prismatic needles soon started appearing all around him, all aimed at his opponent. "Lets begin shall we?" He closed his book and soon all the needles started launching towards Kaiser.

Keeping a straight face, Kaiser raised his sword high up to erect a holy barrier all around him. As all the needles hit the barrier they were all absorbed immediately soon after without leaving even single mark. With Kazuo's attack ending, Kaiser slashed down on his barrier, breaking it, and sending prismatic light shards flying towards Kazuo.

Reacting fast, Kazuo was able to create his own barrier only this time it was made out of Ice. With all the shards hitting the ice barrier it soon cracked and shattered under the pressure. With the Ice barrier now down, Kazuo soon saw the knight charging at him with his sword glowing in golden light.

"Heh." Kazuo casted another spell creating spikes of various sizes from the ground made from burning crystals heading towards Kaiser.

Jumping up high, Kaiser scaled the entirety of Kazuo's spell. Arching his body back while in mid air, the golden knight soon slashed down on Kazuo with great force as the blade leave a trail of golden light. Moving out of the way quick, Kazuo was just barely able to avoid being cut down. The sword hitting the ground instead caused it the floor to crack and send small debris flying.

"Hmm, I would surely be dead if that attack hits." Kazuo laughed. Kaiser turned and raised his at Kazuo. "I would love to admire your strength but you fell for such an easy trap." He grinned. Placed right under Kaiser was a ripped piece of paper from his spell book. With a flick of Kazuo's fingers the words on the paper soon started to glow and rows of crystalline spikes erected all around Kaiser, impaling him from the sides and arms, and trapping him their. Kaiser soon dropped his golden sword on the floor clanging out a bit.

"Did not really want to end things anti-climactically but if this challenge is this easy then what are you going to do." Kazuo said as he approached the sword. Kaiser just stood their trapped and struggling. "Don't worry, I'm not here for your throne. I'm just here for the sword." Kazuo picked the sword of the ground.

The moment Kazuo picked up the sword, Kaiser started to glow bright from where he stood completely enshrouding him in light. Looking quite curious, Kazuo stood by and watched. After a few seconds had passed, Kaiser was soon replaced with Chris standing where he was.

"Ow. Dammit, forgot about the spikes." Chris complained as he pulled out his holographic panel. Pressing a button on the panel, the spikes all disappeared without a trace. "Better." Chris grinned as he was able to move around. "Well anyways, congratulations Kazuo! You and you're team have won this weeks challenge!" Chris exclaimed as his voice was heard all around the castle.

"Hmm it seems that we're to late." Estwynn said as he, Nathan, and Clint were shown climbing up a set of stairs.

"*sigh* at least we got weapons out of it." Nathan tried to make the situation feel better.

"Aww I just hope my team doesn't have to face elimination." Said Ginger as she and Blake was shown getting out of a room together.

"Don't worry, theirs always next time." Blake tried to reassure. The scene soon returned back to the throne room.

"Well, I wouldn't say it wasn't a team effort." Kazuo smiled as he looked towards outside where Alice was still glaring at him with her arms crossed. Derek was no longer in the room with the others but instead was sitting on the fountain on the room beyond it.

"Well either way your team wins and that's that." Chris said in reply. "But to think you would betray your team early on is outstanding. What made you think to do that?" Chris asked looking quite curious.

"I just wanted to know what effect it would have on my team really." Kazuo said nonchalantly. "I really have no ulterior motive other than that." He shrugged.

"So you did it just for the sake of doing it?" Chris asked looking very surprised. Kazuo nodded with a smile on his face. "Man, you really are crazy. I wouldn't be surprised if you ended up killing someone from your own team.

"Actually." Kazuo started but Chris stopped him by waving him of dismissively.

"I don't need to know. You already proved your point." Chris stated. "Anyways, like stated before, those who are able to grab the sword first gets to keep it as well. Meaning, not only did you win you also gained a new weapon." Chris explained.

"Interesting. But what does this sword do exactly?" Kazuo asked looking quite intrigued with his weapon.

"I'll get to that in a second but first handover your blood sword. I forgot to explain this but you only have one extra weapon meaning that once you gain an new weapon you are forced to give up the previous one you gained." Chris explained. "Now hand it over." Chris laid his hand out.

"Hmm, fair enough." Kazuo retrieved his blood sword and tossed it to Chris rather than handing it over. Chris pressed another button on his panel causing the sword to disappear just before it could hit him.

"Really? If you want to know if you can kill me here I'll just say it now that you can't. Got it?" Chris crossed his arms. Kazuo just gave off a chuckle. "Okay, now on to what your sword can do." Chris clears his throat. "As you already know this sword is named Aurum the Golden edge. What you don't know is that it is imbued with holy magic capable of doing lots of things. What Kaiser did earlier is just a fraction of what it can do." He explained with much enthusiasm. "But the highlight thing about this blade is that if you channel all the magic within this sword you can revive anyone but at the cost of the sword losing all power until the next challenge."

"Hmm the ability to revive anyone huh?" Kazuo repeated to himself. "Can I test this sword out before we leave? I want to know how this thing works." He grinned.

"Knock yourself out. We're done here anyways, not like it would matter at this point." Chris shrugged.

With a wide grin on his face, Kazuo started focusing carefully on his new sword. After a couple seconds of silence has passed the sword started radiating with golden light as magical essences started getting absorbed by the sword. A few moments later the holy magic stored within the sword all came out producing a magical sigil with cross patterns appeared on the ground in front of them glowing in bright golden light with a figure started forming. A couple seconds had passed and soon the figure was fully formed to reveal a muscular figure. With the light dying out the figure was soon revealed to be Leonard standing with both his arms crossed and a scowl on his face.

"What the actual fuck Kazuo!" Alice yelled from the other room glaring angrily at him. Chris's jaw just dropped the moment he saw who Kazuo revived.

"Out of all the people to bring back why revive someone from the enemy team?" Chris said out of utter shock.

"You did say anybody so I decided to revive someone from the enemy team if it would actually work." Kazuo grinned. "And he was the first person that crossed my mind while thinking about who to revive." He explained. Leonard just shook his head.

"Adding insult to injury." Leonard sighed. "Not only did I get sprayed on by a skunk and die first, I also got revived by the enemy. For an experiment mind you!" He roared. Kazuo just laughed at his reaction. "Lets get out of here, this day is stressing enough as it is."

"Oh right, you still smell like skunk fart back in reality." Chris grimaced. "Here, take this portal. It will send you back into the maze area. You'll stay their until everyone's gone." Chris pressed a button on his panel to make a green portal appear.

"*sigh* Fine." Leonard hopped inside the portal all the grumbling to himself.

"Okay, now that that's done lets all get out of here." Chris pressed on his panel once more and soon all remaining contestants were transported out of virtual reality.

Back outside in the real world, the last few remaining contestants all got out of their pods with everyone waiting for them. As each one got out of their pods, they were all met with different responses and reactions. With all the mindless chatter filling the room, Chris soon called out for everyone's attention.

"Ahem. May I have your attentions please?" He announced for everyone to hear. The monitor soon opened up to reveal Leonard still in the virtual world. "As all of you may know by now Team Red Dragons have won this weeks challenge." Chris started. "Meaning they are safe from tonight's elimination. For second place it was supposed to be the Blue Nagas for losing the least amount of members in comparison to the Yellow Chocobos but since Kazuo here revived Leonard they are now the new second placers" He explained.

"Wait what? Are you serious!" Ginger said in surprise. "How did they become the new second placers if we are all in equal amounts!?"

"Yeah. Its supposed to be a tie at the least." Estwynn added.

"Well here's the thing. The only reason why I chose them to be the new second placers is because on how you lost the two members." Chris looked towards Phoebe and Paris. "It's because these two gave up." The other Blue Naga members looked straight at them. Phoebe hid behind Paris trembling slightly.

"Wait. Let me explain." Paris defended her and Phoebe.

"Save it for later." Chris stopped her. "That is all. I'll be seeing the six of you outside for the elimination ceremony in an hour from now. All the others may watch the ceremony taking place if you so wish." Chris ended. "Wait, make that two hours. I still need to asses Leonard here." Chris gestured towards Leonard on screen. "Now, what are you all waiting for? Get out of here. Unless you want to see a naked Leonard."

"Wait, what?" Leonard's eyes widened. "What do you mean-." He was cut off when Chris pressed a button on his panel muting all volume. Everyone soon started walking out of the building leaving only Chris behind. With everyone now gone, Chris flicked his fingers to call out another intern. "Get Chef and tell him to bring all the tomatoes and tomatoes juice we have in stock."

"Yes sir. Anything else?"

"Yeah, bring a tub in as well. The biggest one we have." Chris answered.

* * *

(Chef's food tent. One hour and thirty-five minutes before voting.)

Shown inside sitting on a table by their lonesome was Paris poking away at the food she had on plate. On her plate was a scoop of mashed potatoes with gravy, a couple green beans, and a single burger with a few bites taken from it. She just sat their eating her food silently while having a depressed look on her face. As she was busy eating, Ginger soon entered the tent.

"Hey." Ginger said softly as she approached Paris and sitting down next to her. "So what is it that you want to talk about?"

"Listen, theirs a reason why both me and Phoebe gave up." Paris started.

"Okay." Ginger nodded.

"To keep things short, I only suggested it for Phoebe's sake. After we got cornered by the paladins I got severely injured to the point where I couldn't even heal myself." Paris explained.

"Okay but why though? Phoebe can defend herself right?"

"I know she can but up to what extent? The only reason why I know she can do it because she has someone with her. If she were to be alone I don't know what would have happened to her." Paris reasoned out. "I hope you understand."

"*sigh* I do understand you. If I were in your situation I might have done the same thing honestly." Ginger replied.

"Thank you!" Paris smiled.

"Yeah, yeah but how would the votes go? As far as I know the others might either vote for you or Phoebe." Ginger crossed her arms.

"I know." Paris let out a deep breath. "That's also the reason why I need to talk to you. I'm here tell you to not vote out Phoebe. If you want someone to be voted off, vote for me instead." She looked at Ginger with a serious look.

"You really do want to protect Phoebe huh? Fine. I won't vote for Phoebe." Ginger assured. "In one condition though." She looked at Paris with a straight look.

"Okay what is it?

"Tell me who you're voting for." Ginger answered.

"Um, I don't know, Clint maybe? Or maybe Estwynn? I'm not so sure about this." Paris pouted.

"Vote out Estwynn. He's too good to make it pass the first round of eliminations." Ginger stated. "If we don't vote him off now it would be near impossible to vote him off later on as the game continues." She explained.

"Umm okay." Paris replied looking a bit confused.

"Good. Tell Phoebe to vote the same way. So that we could at least hope for a tie." Ginger stood up. "Okay now that's settled, I need to go before Lucette finds my bag of marshmallows." Ginger quickly headed out of the tent leaving Paris alone.

* * *

(Cabin 9: Estwynn and Tristan's. Fifty minutes before voting.)

Inside the cabin sitting on the chair next to the table was Estwynn who was busy contemplating on who to vote off. Sitting across from him was Nathan who was also deep in thought on who to vote off as well. As the two sat their thinking, Nathan suddenly slammed his arms on the table letting out a heavy sigh.

"Man, this is so difficult to make. I still don't know if voting for either of them is a good idea." Nathan slid down lower on his chair.

"Well I'm not sure if voting for them is a good idea either. All I know it's the only reasonable one we got." Estwynn stated as he crossed his arms. "Given both of their capabilities during challenges Phoebe looks to be a great asset but I don't think she fully even trust us yet. Especially if we vote off Paris, the only person here in our team she's mostly close to."

"What are you trying to say? Vote for someone else?"

"Well, if it means Phoebe gets to work at her best, then yeah." Estwynn replied. "But the question is who exactly."

"What about Ginger? I mean she looks very formidable ally given her strengths but I just have this shaking feeling that she would be near unstoppable if we allow her to reach merge." Nathan explained. "So cutting her off now might increase our odds of winning."

"But what about actually reaching merge first?" Estwynn pointed out. "I think it would be better to vote her off later really."

"I see." Nathan answered. "What about Clint? Yeah he is good and all but he's also one of the most fearsome contestants here given his knowledge of various gaming elements."

"Yeah but that would give the Yellow team the only one with an edge against everyone because of Dylan." Estwynn reminded. "Ugh, why is this so difficult." He slumped down on to the table.

"Fifteen minutes left until the ceremony starts. Blue Nagas, please all be here now to pass in your votes." Chris's voice echoed out through the P.A. system.

"Fine. Lets vote off Ginger. Clint is a way better investment." Estwynn stood up. "Lets go." The two soon headed out of the cabin and headed towards the campsite.

* * *

(Elimination grounds: Blue Nagas)

"Welcome everyone to the first ever elimination ceremony for this season!" Chris exclaimed as he opened up his arms dramatically. Standing beside him was Chef who held a plate of five cookies all in the shape of nagas. Right behind the two is a large fire pit burning brightly with embers flicking out. Sitting on the stumps in-front of them were the Blue Naga members with everyone, except for Leonard, was seated on the remaining stumps.

"How this will work is that I'll be reading the names of those who are safe for tonight and the one who isn't mentioned gets eliminated." Chris explained to them all. "Okay, lets start." Chris grabbed a list of votes from his pockets. "Phoebe." Chris started.

Chef tossed her the cookie but only got hold off half it for it broke off in her hands

"Nathan."

Nathan was able to grab on to his cookie with only crumbs falling off.

"Clint."

Clint didn't even bother to catch his.

"Paris."

Paris's cookie landed easily on her hands but broke into smaller pieces.

"Ginger. Estwynn. You two are on the bottom two but the one who is safe for tonight is..."

"...Ginger. Congratulations."

"Yes!" Ginger jumped in joy and grabbed her cookie instead.

"What!?" Estwynn sat their in utter disbelief.

"I'm sorry Estwynn but your team has decided to vote you off tonight." Chris smirked at him. "But don't worry, you're not leaving just yet."

"What do you mean?"

"I'll explain the details later." Chris waved him off. "But for now everyone follow me back into the dome." Chris and Chef soon started walking back towards the challenge building. As they were all by the front doors, Chris stopped everyone. "Everyone, stay out here for the time being except for you Estwynn. I need you to follow me inside."

"Okay." Estwynn replied as he followed Chris in along with Chef. Rumbling was soon heard from the other side.

As everyone stood outside waiting for something to happen, the doors soon opened up with Chris standing on the other side.

"Everyone. Follow me." Chris motioned for them to enter. As each one enter the building one by one they all soon saw what Chris and Chef did.

Placed on the far end of the room, at the end of the row of nine pods to their left, was a red colored pod with it's own individual monitor placed on the front. Laying down inside the pod was Estwynn safely placed inside the pod.

"Umm Chris? Why is he in their?" Ginger asked from the middle of the group.

"Oh thats because once you've been eliminated you still have one more challenge to go through." Chris smirked. "And that challenge is to survive the a horde of on coming enemies none stop until merge hits. This self-challenge determines whether or not you'll be part of the three returnees for merge." Chris explained.

"Well that sounds a bit sadistic isn't it?" Alice pointed out from the back of the group.

"Yeah, also how would you determine who would be part of the merge anyways? Wouldn't that be an advantage for those who get eliminated earlier if you base this all on kills?" Dylan questioned.

"Oh for that, the criteria is simple really." Chris smiled. "To determine who gets to be in merge will be taking in an account more than just kills. Will be accounting for most waves survived, number of deaths, total kills, and average time per wave. This criteria is to ensure even the one eliminated just before the merge has a chance." Chris explained to them.

"What about me and Laren though? We don't weild weapons at all." Lucette pointed out.

"Well, good luck then." Chris laughed sadistically. Lucette took in a big gulp.

"So Estwynn is going to fight none stop right? Wouldn't that be dangerous because of no food and sleep and stuff like that?" Gelsey asked from the front of the group.

"Oh, don't worry about that. He'll be having long rest periods. For three hours at a time if I remember correctly." Chris thought to himself. "As for the whole feeding him and stuff I can't really explain it since its all sciency and stuff that I have little to no attention span for." Chris shrugged. "Anything else?" No one else asked.

"Good. You may now all leave. Have a good night." Chris gave off a smirk. Everyone all soon left Chris alone in the building. With the famous host now all alone, he soon moved into position to stand by his control panel. The camera soon started closing in on him as he gave off his trademark smile.

"Well, their you have it folks. You all just witnessed the first ever elimination ceremony with more to come soon." Chris gave off a sinister looking grin. "As well what our contestants would experience other than a stay at a luxury hotel." Chris looked straight into the camera. "How would each contestant act now that they know what awaits them once they get eliminated? How would the Red Dragons fair knowing they have an unstable ally? Would the Blue Nagas be able to cope knowing that they lost Estwtnn, their most well rounded player? And would Leonard's stinky situation ever be fixed? Find out next time on Total...Drama...Dungeon Hunters!" Chris held both his arms open.

* * *

Votes:

Paris: I trust in Ginger in this one so Estwynn.

Phoebe: I'm n-not sure about this b-but Paris told me to vote for Estwynn.

Ginger: Estwynn. He's simply to good to stay.

Estwynn: *sigh* I hope this is the right choice but...Ginger.

Nathan: Ginger...

Clint: Hmph, Paris. She looks to be the weakest of the two.

* * *

18th: Estwynn Paratus – The Mech and Hero enthusiast. Role: Fighter

* * *

 **Authors Note: Well, here's another long chapter for you guys to read. I actually had a good time writing this one this time around but choosing who to eliminate was really the hardest thing to do since I really love all these characters that parting ways with them is something I took the longest to think about.**

 **Now, onto the reason as to why I eliminated Estwynn as well as my final thoughts for the guy. I'll be doing this for all eliminations. The main reason as to why I made the hard choice to eliminate him came down to one thing really. Estwynn, in his virtual form, is a jack of all trades basically. He could fulfill any role the team needs and he could still do it effectively. He has little draw backs as well as not many abusable weaknesses. But, in a team full of specialties, being the Swiss army knife of the team is something that could make or break him and his team because of what he turns into dictates how the team would fight.**

 **An example of this is when He, Clint, and Nathan fought off the Mimics. He has two forms that goes into close combat, a form for mid-range fighting, and a form for long range combat. I could think of multiple outcomes how the battle would end given these forms as well as different scenarios of how a death/s might occur if he somehow made a misstep. I actually scrapped a scene where he gets disarmed in his spear form as well as a scene where Nathan takes on a 2v1.**

 **This example also shows my thought process when writing the guy really but I don't think you guys want me to go in-depth in that. Anyways, time for my final thoughts. Overall, this guy is pretty much the most well rounded character here as well having the would be role of the teams mediator and/or tactician given his personality that I try to portray. Sadly, this is where his time in Blue Nagas end but hopefuly not in this competition.**

 **Okay, with that out of the way. Time for the chapter questions...yay. knowing that your OC would not only be competing against others but also amongst their own teammates because of what's on the line for each challenge. Will they act on their own greed or would they still play with their team? As always send in your answers through PM and have a great (insert preferred time here)**


	6. Theme Song!

**Authors Note: This is just a mini-chapter just to showcase the theme song. I figured that this should have its own separate chapter since after a while you guys would skip over the theme song anyways. Anyways enough with the rambling. Lets get on with the theme song...woo.**

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 _The camera showed an aerial view of the forest compound before quickly zooming in on an area._

 **Dear Mom and Dad, I'm doing fine.**

It zoomed in on one of the cabins where Laren and Lucette suddenly raced out off. They suddenly ran passed Derek who's ear phones got knocked off.

 **You guys are on my mind**.

 _Estwynn, standing by the food tent's entrance, saw them run on by towards the challenge building before entering the food tent with a grumble in his stomach._

 **You asked me what I wanted to be.**

 _ **The camera followed the two running inside the challenge building. Inside they were shown getting in pods next to each other. Seeing them inside was Blake and Tristan who were messing with a far off pod. It soon started to spark out wildly.**_

 **And now I think the answer is plain to see.**

 _With a panicked look, Tristan returned the pods panel while Blake wrote on a piece of paper saying 'Out of Order' before the two ran out. As the two of them ran out of the building in a panic, they failed to notice Leonard standing by the doorway watching them with a skeptic look._

 **I wanna be famous.**

 _The camera view soon shifted to the virtual world showcasing an open forest plains with trees scattered all around. The two were shown running passed the camera's view before the camera panning forward to reveal them meeting up with Janet and Ginger. All four of them soon started walking towards the maze behind them._

 **I wanna live close to the sun.**

 _Alice was soon shown watching them from on top of a tree branch with her back pressed to the trunk and one leg swinging. Laren suddenly appeared right beside her causing her to fall off with leaves following._

 **Go pack your bags, 'cause I've already won.**

 _It then panned towards the bottom of the tree to reveal Kazuo had caught her from her fall with a grin on his face. Alice just looked away from him with a scowl but was suddenly dropped by Kazuo._

 **Everything to prove, nothing in my way.**

 _It then showed a different part of the forest where Clint and Dylan were fighting off against a giant stone golem. The latter went in for a leaping strike with his sword leaving a trail of darkness to strike the giant golem._

 **I'll get their one day.**

 _Clint pulled back on his bow before releasing his arrow to send it flying towards the golem. The arrow soon split to create a straight volley. As both of their attacks hits, the giant golem soon exploded into multiple stone pieces._

 **'Cause I wanna be famous.**

 _Dylan cheered himself while grinning for a job well done while Clint kept up his straight look. He soon withdrew his bow and walked off._

 **Na na na na na na na na na na na na**

 _The camera then showed Phoebe and Paris sitting by an open field of pink and violet flowers. Paris picking up a pink flower caused the ground to shake and a flower monster sprung out of the ground roaring at them while flailing around it's roots._

 **I wanna be, I wanna be, I wanna be famous.**

 _The camera zooming out showed the flower monster was no bigger then the normal flowers. Paris, laughing slightly, tried to pick up the flower monster but withdrew her hand when it bit her. Phoebe, terrified by the monster, hid behind her male porcelain doll with his spear tip glistening in the sun._

 **I wanna be, I wanna be, I wanna be famous.**

 _The camera panned away to show where Nathan could be seen relaxing under a large tree with a bag filled with loot next to him. Gelsey and Kali passing by saw this and tried to see what was inside his bag. Kali, sensing danger, tried to stop Gelsey but was to late when she sprung a trap and started hanging upside down._

 ***whistle***

 _Then the entire cast can now be shown sitting around the campfire with most of them looking at Chris with fearful looks as he stood their grinning with his arms crossed and a list of names in hand. The camera then pans upwards following the trail of smoke made by the campfire only to stop when the words 'Total Drama: Dungeon Hunters came to view. Two swords crossed underneath the title, a couple arrows soon hit the words, and a flash of lightning soon came crashing down behind it._

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 **Well, here it is, the theme song. I decided to do this to save you guys the hassle of scrolling passed it. If you guys for some reason still want to see it then you'll know where to find it. Anyways, see you all next time.**


	7. The Silent Night

"Last time on Total Drama: Dungeon Hunters." Chris started off the episode with a huge smile on his face. "Our contestants took on the castle siege challenge where their goal was to steal the legendary golden sword Aurum from the stage boss Kaiser's hand." A picture of Kaiser sitting on his throne was shown on screen. "After hard fought battles endured by each team the final winner was soon determined when Kazuo of the Red Dragons picked up the legendary sword." A replay of Kazuo was shown picking up the sword was played on screen. "With their victory the defeat of the Blue Nagas was imminent for they were the final losers amongst the three teams and were forced to take on the very first elimination ceremony for the season." A still image of the Blue Naga members were shown sitting right in-front of Chris and Chef at the elimination grounds. "Will the Blue Nagas be able to recover and come back after losing Estwynn? Are the Red Dragons going go be this weeks winners once more? Or will Dylan's game sense be able to carry the Yellow Chocobos to victory after their performance last challenge? Find out now on Total...Drama...Dungeon Hunters!" Chris held his arms open dramatically.

~(Theme Song)

(Cabin 5: Alice and Laren's)

Inside the dimly lit cabin was Laren who was fast asleep on the top bunk with her entire body completely covered by her sheets with only one arm sticking out. As the sunrise slowly creep up on her, the sun's rays were now directed on her face. After a few seconds had Laren's closed eyes soon started twitching before slowly opening. Letting out a soft yawn she soon sat up straight with her arms stretched.

"*yawn* Another bright day it seems." Laren says a bit cheerily as she hops off of her bed. Laren was shown wearing a simple white nightgown with a single bow on her chest. Dropping down on to the wooden flooring caused the bed to shake slightly, disturbing Alice from her sleep.

"Mmm, Laren...keep it down a bit." Alice grumbled as she pulled the covers over her head. "Go back to bed. Its still too early." Her voice sounded muffled from under the sheets.

"Oh fine, you had a hard day yesterday anyways." Laren smiled but Alice didn't even budge. She soon moved towards the sink to freshen herself up. As Laren turned on the tap and scooped up a handful of water, a sudden knocking was heard from the door.

"Knock knock. Anyone home?" A male voice came from outside the door. The guy sounded he was in a very happy mood.

"Just one second." Laren replied as she dropped her handful of water and wiped her hands dry with a nearby towel. As she finished, she soon walked towards the door and opened it up. Standing on the other side was Kazuo barring a huge grin while already wearing his normal clothing. "Oh, hey Kazuo. Your up early." Laren smiled at him.

"Yeah, I figured that I should start off the day early." Kazuo replied. "Anyways, is Alice still inside? I need to speak with her for a bit."

"Yup! She's still inside but she's still asleep though." Laren explained. "Why not come back again later? I'll make sure let Alice know you came by."

"Hmm, I see." Kazuo grinned. "Well, tell her to come find me once she's up and running. I'll just be close by." He took a quick glance inside. "Okay?"

"Sure!"

"Okay. Well, see you all later." Kazuo smiled before leaving. Laren soon closed the door and turned only to see Alice was already seated right up giving her a straight and serious look. She wore a plain white tank top for her upper half but from her waist downward was covered by the sheets.

"Oh, morning Alice!" Laren smiled. "How long have you been up?"

"Why was Kazuo here?" Alice asked in a serious tone.

"He needed to talk to you or something." Laren explained. "He said to come find you once you're ready."

"I see." Alice replied. She soon removed the sheets and swung her legs to the side before getting up. "Well, if you don't mind me, I'll be heading out for a bit." She smiled. She put on her pair of slippers before walking towards the front door.

"What about Kazuo?"

Alice stopped as she was already half way through the door. "We'll see." She said simply as she head out of the door and closing it behind her. Taking the wooden steps down, she scanned around the place to see if she could spot Kazuo anywhere. As she looked around she finally took notice of Kazuo leaning on the cabin next to theirs with his arms. As she approached him, she soon noticed the sly grin on Kazuo's face.

"Morning Alice." He said with a wide grin. "How's the second day threating ya?"

"Lovely." Alice replied sarcastically. "Now cut the small talk and get on with it." She said with her arms crossed as she stared at him with a piercing look. "What is it that you wanted to tell me?"

"Interesting." Kazuo said softly to himself with a smirk. "Seeing what happened yesterday I thought you would be the type to ignore me and yet here you are." He said in an amused tone. "And people say I was the one who gone mad." He gave off a soft chuckle.

"I can see why." Alice replied in a much harsher tone. "Now, if that is all you have to say to me then I better head back inside. I need to get ready before that narcissistic host starts his new challenge." She was about to leave but then Kazuo suddenly stopped her.

"Wait. There is something else I wanted to ask." Kazuo said as he placed a hand on Alice's shoulder.

"Okay, make it quick." She swiped away Kazuo's hand.

"Tell me, if we lose this challenge who are you going to vote off." He said in a rather calm yet serious tone. Alice was about to speak up and say his name but she hesitated and closed her lips instead. "Well?"

"Th-that's none of your business!" Alice said with a hint of uncertainty in her tone all the while glaring at him. "Now go away. I don't want to see that smug look of yours." She soon headed straight back to her cabin and closed the door. Kazuo, grinning to himself, just walked off off-screen.

(Confessional.)

Alice: I just...I keep saying to myself that once we lose he's gone and very much wanted to say it to his face but...for some reason I just can't. *sigh* That Kazuo...what game are you trying to play here?

Kazuo: Hmm, even someone as cold as her got shaken that easily. I wonder if it would affect her in any way later. *grins*

Laren: Umm what just happened? I was bust brushing my teeth when Alice suddenly entered the cabin looking very much down. Did I miss something?

(End confessional.)

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(Chef's food tent.)

Inside the make shift cafeteria were a couple of long tables with seats on each side. At the end far end of the large tent placed another long table with silver platters holding different types of food in them, a basket full of bread, and three different dispensers filled with different types of juices along with one pot filled with coffee. Standing in-line for all the food was Lucette who had an empty plate in her hand.

"Hmm, what to eat." She thought to herself as he inspected each sealed platter. Opening up each one she soon saw what platter contained which food item. The first platter she opened had fried rice in it sprinkled with various veggies and spices. The aroma that escaped from it was so inviting that she couldn't help but scoop up a few spoon fulls. The next platter she opened was filled with scrambled eggs sprinkled with chopped green onions. Without much hesitation, she scooped up a few. The last one she opened up held multiple large strips of bacon. Taking a couple strips her plate was now filled with food.

"Man, this looks good. Two days in a row with awesome food." Lucette said to herself as she filled a glass full of orange juice. "Who knew Chef can actually be nice for once."

"I heard that." Chef's voice was soon heard from behind him. Caught by surprise, Lucette nearly dropped her plate but managed to hold on to it tight with only a few bits of rice dropping down along. "Careful their. I don't want to see any of my food wasted."

"A little warning next time then." Lucette abruptly said as she placed his food on a nearby table. She soon went back to the food table to grab a spoon and fork before sitting down.

"If you are wondering as to why I'm being generous with my cooking its mostly because I've been paid a lot more that normal to do so." Chef said as he went to the back of the tent. He unzipped a closed portion of the tent and holding it open before looking back to stare at the lone girl. "Just don't expect me to be nice to you maggots." He laughed quietly before entering the other side leading to the kitchen.

"Okay then..." Lucette trailed off as she watched Chef disappear into the kitchen. "Well, time for the moment of truth. Is this food really as good as it seems." She says as she eyes her food for the last time with a spoon in hand. Taking the first bite of her food, the taste of it was so exhilarating that she couldn't help but eat some more.

As Lucette kept on eating her food, enjoying every piece of it, a new face soon stepped inside the tent without her even noticing. He was a tall and buff specimen with short with short black hair that seemed to spike out as well as a pair of black-and-white skull tattoos in each of his biceps. He wore a light tan V-neck fur shirt that splits down all the way to his pecs to reveal some parts of an ax tattoo. He also wore medium length fur shorts that reached just above his knees. Looking around, he soon took notice of Lucette with his deep brown eyes sitting on her own before approaching her.

"Excuse me." He said in a thick Mongolian accent. Lucette looking up soon took notice of him and couldn't help but drop her spoon with her eyes widened and jaw dropped. "Umm are you okay?" He said looking a bit confused. Lucette snapping back into reality just shook her head but the newcomer thought that she gestured for a no. "Well umm I better get you some help then." He said turning around.

"Wait!" Lucette said stopping him. "I mean um, I meant to say was I'm okay. Really." She smiled. "You were just umm...how do I say this.." She thought hardly about the next thing to say.

"Captivating. Alluring. Attractive. I could go on if you like?" He said jokingly. Lucette just stared at him at a loss for words. "Anyways, since you say your okay, have you seen a Chef Hatchet around? I was told I could find him here." He asked. Lucette just blinked at him a few times. "Umm hello?" He waved his hand in-front of her. Moments later, Chef came out of the kitchen looking a bit angry.

"What's with all the commotion here?" Chef roared as he looked around. He soon took notice of the newcomer. "Oh, its just you Skell." He crossed his arms. "You were supposed to be here a few days ago. What took you so long?"

"Skell huh? That's a nice name." Lucette purred. She held her head up high with her hands with both elbows on the table.

"Well, this place isn't exactly on the map." Skell said jokingly. "And besides, whats important is I'm here and ready to go." He smiled. Chef just glared at him with his arms crossed.

"Wait 'till Chris gets a load of you." Chef shook his head. "C'mon, I'll lead you to his office." Chef soon headed out of the tent with Skell following. Soon after, Ginger and Phoebe walked inside seeing the lone Lucette still staring off dreamily at the entrance.

"Oh, hey Lucette! Sorry it took us so long. Phoebe here took forever to finish." Ginger said with a bit of exaggeration.

"I-I'm sorry." Phoebe said meekly.

"Its okay Phoebe. Your too cute to get mad at for to long." Ginger teased as she patted Phoebe's head. "Anyways, we passed by this new guy before we got here. You know who he is?" She looked towards Lucette.

"Oh, his name is Skell. And man was he handsome!" Lucette exclaimed. "I wonder if he's still single." She pondered to herself.

"Ugh, not this again." Ginger shook her head. "How many guys here are you going to fall in love with?"

"I don't know. Maybe all of them." Lucette giggled.

"*sigh* Just stay away from Jag then." Ginger crossed her arms. "Phoebe here might get jealous." She teased as she pointed at Phoebe with her thumb. The latter just turned bright red.

"Gi-Ginger! That's n-not funny!" Phoebe raised her voice a bit while looking down.

"I'm just kidding Phoebe." Ginger smiled. "C'mon, lets grab something to eat. I'm starving here."

(Confessional)

Lucette: *Whistles* What a fine, handsome, and captivating man he was. I wonder how long will he be staying here for?

(End Confessional)

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(The Maze: The Mech Labs)

Inside roaming around the imposing maze filled with high tech machinery and gear was Tristan and Dylan. They were just there blindly roaming around the place all the while chatting to themselves.

"So Tristan, I gotta ask. Why did you agree for me to tag along with you?" Dylan said with a skeptic look. "I mean we are from different teams and all."

"Yeah that is true. Being with you does pose a threat." Tristan nodded. "But then again we will be back stabbing each other anyways once the challenge starts." He thought back to what Kazuo did. "So being with you is no different then being with my own team." Both of them took a nearby turn.

"I guess you're right." Dylan replied in agreement. "I already had Blake defect from my team anyways." He let out a deep breath as he thought back about the previous challenge. "If only I wasn't so careless." He gritted his teeth in anger. "I sensed the arrow coming but I was so hell-bent on killing that paladin that I ignored all warnings."

"Question, how do you 'sense' an arrow coming at you from behind? I saw what happened on the large monitor and you could barely see it flying." Tristan remembered what he witnessed.

"Oh, that's because I gave myself the ability of shadow perception. Basically as long their is some darkness and I am nearby I can tell if something is there or not." Dylan explained. "Before you say anything like 'that's OP' or something it really isn't. Just because I know something is there that doesn't automatically mean I know where it exactly is." He reasoned. "Also, if you're wondering as to why I'm telling you all this all I could say it doesn't really matter much. Since I'm still technically blind in the darkness."

"I see. I'm pretty much straight forward guy. I shoot huge cannons, I throw my pipe wrench, and can summon a volley of cogs. Nothing much other than that really." Tristan said as he drags his mechanical hand on a low hanging pipe. "I simple guy with a straight forward build. That's what I am." He chuckled lightly.

"Their is nothing wrong with being simple really." Dylan interjected. "If you watch e-sports then you would know the most highly contested characters tend to be the most simplest ones. Heck, even in games like starcraft majority of the higher ladders tend to be the human faction." He laughed slightly. "All these characters who takes a lot of skill to play is just for show really."

"Really now." Tristan said with a small smile. "Well then, lets put that theory to the test then on the next challenge." He gave Dylan a serious look. "The next time I see you in the virtual world, be prepared for a cannon shot to hit you in the back instead."

"We'll see about that." Dylan smiled. As they continue on to walk further into the maze taking twists and turns all the while inspecting every room they encounter they both soon found themselves on a large open area with a very deep drop. Ahead of them was just a long narrow bridge leading to a small central area with what seems to be some sort of reactor in the middle off it as it gave off a light blue glow.

"Hm, this looks promising." Dylan said with an amused tone. As the two scaled the entire length of the bridge, they soon found themselves to where the reactor was.

"Could this be what's powering this portion of the maze?" Tristan pondered as he inspected the glass container.

"It might as well be. If I know my sci-fi games, central places like these tend to be boss fights but I doubt Chris put some time into much research into these sorts of things." Dylan said confidently. As soon as he said all this a loud screeching soon echoed throughout the area. "Uh-oh I spoke to soon." He pulled out his sword. Tristan did the same as he drew out his pipe wrench.

As the two wait patiently for whatever it is that might threaten and oppose them, the central pillar they were standing on suddenly started shaking with the sounds of metallic clanging echoing around them. A couple seconds passed with the entire pillar still shaking, a large snake-like machine came slithering down from below them. It stared at them with its glowing red eyes before letting out a high pitched screech and climbing up the pillar fast with its metallic body wrapping around the pillar. A loud crunching sound was heard as it was climbing up with small metallic bits falling off.

"Uh, Dylan. You're the expert here so what now?" Tristan said as he stared at the snake machine climbing up fast.

"Start shooting!" Dylan commanded as he clasped on to his sword tightly. The blade of his sword started to flow with dark energy. "We need to stop it from crushing the pillar." Dylan slashed at the snake's metallic body. Bits of it started flying off but it still kept wrapping itself all over the to pillar.

"Will do!" Tristan replied as he pulled out his cannons from his back. Taking careful aim he let out a barrage of cannon shot most of which hitting the mechanical snake. Small bits and pieces came flying off of it. As the two continued their assault on the giant snake machine's fast moving body, it soon let out a piercing shriek before it's head popped out from the top of the pillar staring at them. With its razor sharp steel fangs protruding from it's mouth, the snake lunged itself at the two contestants.

"Get down!" Dylan yelled as he ducked out of the way off the attack. Tristan following Dylan's lead was able to just barely get away from the snake's attack. The attack hitting the platform they were standing on instead, it ripped through a large portion of it causing the platform to shake a bit. The snake turning its head around to face them lunged itself straight at them with its mouth gaping open.

Tristan able to regain his balance shot at the snake's open mouth causing a small explosion to occur as it pulled it's head back with smoke coming out of its mouth. With the snake now dazed, Dylan took this opportunity to quickly run up its long body until he reached the snake's head. Dylan now standing at the top of the snake's metallic head, he raised his sword up high with the blade pointing down. With the blade flowing with dark energy, he drove his sword into the snake's head causing the it to go out of control.

Shaking it's head wildly with sparks of electricity coming from the sword, Dylan was trying his best to hold on tight. With the snake constantly trashing around and slamming hard onto the nearby walls the entire place looked like it was about to collapse for metallic chunks started falling down from above them.

"Emergency. Emergency. Power core level one malfunctioning." An automated voice echoed out as the room they were in started to flashing bright red lights.

"Get out of here!" Dylan commanded as he held on to his sword tight. The snake bashed itself onto a nearby wall once more causing Dylan to lose his balance but he was able to hang on.

"What about you?" Tristan said looking a bit concerned.

"Don't worry about me, I got things under control." Dylan says as he regained his balance. "Now go! Before the place comes crashing down!" Tristan nodding his head soon started to run across the narrow bridge as fast as he can. The snake seeing this tried to lunge at him but recoiled it's head back when Dylan pulled back on his sword. "Where do you think your going?" He says to the snake as he pushed his sword to the side causing the snake to slam onto the wall next to them.

"I made it!" Tristan yelled the moment he was now back to the entrance. Dylan seeing this pushed down on his sword causing it to sink deeper into the snakes head with electricity flying out. Letting out another ear piercing screech, the snake swung it's head forward this time strong enough to send Dylan flying forward.

"AAAAH!" Dylan yelled from the top of his lungs as he was sent flying towards the bridge. Hitting the bridge with a hard crash he bounced off of it but managed to hold on to the railings to prevent him from falling off. With Dylan now off of the snake's head, it was able to gain some of it's control back as it stared straight at the hanging contestant.

"Dylan!" Tristan called out as he attempted to run up to him. The mechanical snake letting out one more powerful shriek caused Tristan to stop for it was unbearable to hear any longer. "Aaaah." He dropped to his knees as he covered his ears. The snake shifting it's attention to Tristan decided to swiftly lunge at him bringing the bridge down with it. Tristan's body soon disappeared in a flash of lights in the jaws of the snake showing that he was now gone.

"Shit." Dylan cursed as he was now alone still hanging from the bridge. With nothing supporting the bridge from the other side, the remaining portion of the bridge Dylan was still on swung back towards the pillar hitting it with a loud crash. "Ugh." Dylan groaned as he held on tight.

The snake now looking back towards the hanging Dylan just stared at him menacingly with it's laser red eyes. Dylan still not yet giving up, aimed his gauntlet towards the snake as dark energy was collecting all over his palm.

"Take this!" Dylan yelled as he launched the ball of dark energy towards the snake. The attack proving ineffective didn't make it flinch at all. With one last lunge, the snake crushed Dylan under it's jaws and he soon disappeared with a bright flicker.

A few moments later the scene switched to outside of the maze where Dylan was just about to get up with Tristan standing over him giving him a hand. With disappointment all over the two's faces, they both let out heavy sighs from their defeat but soon shrugged it off.

"Well, I guess luck wasn't on our side." Dylan said as he looked back towards the maze entrance. "It seems we haven't prayed to RNG-sus enough." He joked as he let out a soft laugh.

"Whatever you say, bud." Tristan laughed as he placed a hand on his shorter companion.

"Excuse me everyone, may I have your attentions please?" Chris's voice was soon heard in the virtual world. "Please be here by the challenge building for the next challenge is about to begin. Also, I'll be introducing a new special guest so everyone should hurry up and get here." A neon portal soon appeared right in-front of the two. "Like last time, this portal will send you back to the real world. That is all." He ended.

"Oh well, time to get out of here." Dylan says as he approached the portal. The two of them soon got in the portal and were both sent back to reality. The pods they were both held in soon opened up with both of them climbing out. Outside to greet them was Chris, Lucette, Phoebe, Ginger, and the newcomer Skell.

"Hi, my name is Skell. Pleasure to meet you." He says as he gestured for a hand shake from Dylan and Tristan. The two soon shook Skell's hand one at a time before introducing themselves.

"The name's Dylan." Dylan introduced.

"And mine is Tristan." Tristan added in. "So tell us Skell, why are you here for?"

"You see I'm-" Skell was about to start when Chris suddenly cut him off.

"Save the details for later." Chris waved him off dismissively. "Lets wait for the other contestants to arrive."

"Fair enough." Skell replied. After a couple moments of waiting, the next few contestants soon walked in. Walking inside was Gelsey, Kali, Blake, Paris, and Janet all walking in one after another.

"Morning Chris." Paris greeted with a smile.

"Yeah, mornin'." Blake greeted as well.

"Hm, it seems Derek isn't here yet." Janet said looking around. "Second time he left without saying anything." She pointed out.

"Better hope he gets here, otherwise you'll be going in without him." Chris stated. Moments later the door slid open once more letting in the next few contestants. The next ones to get in were Clint, Kazuo, Laren, and Alice.

"Took you long enough to wake up." Dylan grinned as his roommate approached. Clint didn't bother to speak for he just gave him a long look before walking off passed him. "Hey! If we're going to be rivals you might as well join in some friendly banter." He says as he followed Clint.

"Oh, hey there Chris! What challenge do you have in store for us this time around?" Kazuo said in a rather more energetic tone then usual.

"I'll explain it to you all later. We need to wait for a few more contestants." Chris answered him.

"So Chris, who's the new guy? He looks cool!" Laren smiled as she saw Skell.

"Like I said, I'll explain it all later. We just need the others to arrive." Chris crossed his arms in anticipation for the others. The doors soon opened up for the third and final time for Nathan, Derek, and Leonard all came in. Leonard though, no longer made the room smell all stinky for the skunk stench was now washed off.

"Hey! It seems the tomato bath worked!" Chris exclaimed as he took in a deep breath without the need to gag. Everyone else did the same and felt the same way.

"Yeah, I guess you're right. It seems Phoebe here can spend the night once more with Leonard." Paris teased as she softly grabbed on to Phoebe's shoulders from behind. The latter just looked down out of embarrassment.

"P-Paris! Why are y-you so m-mean." Phoebe whined a bit. Paris just chuckled as she wrapped her arms around Phoebe..

"That's because you look so cute when you're flustered." Paris said sweetly.

"Yeah she's right. You do look cute when you're embarrassed and all." Ginger chimed in as she patted Phoebe's head. Phoebe just kept silent all the while looking down.

"Ugh, I just hope that no more stupid skunks start barging in on me again while taking a bath." Leonard crossed his arms.

"Don't worry, I'm sure Phoebe is as innocent as she looks." Paris said with a wide grin on her face all the while chuckling to herself. Blake, catching on to her joke, just shook his head and cringed a little.

"No Paris just stop." Blake said looking very much unamused.

"I said SKUNK!" Leonard yelled out as he caught on as well. Paris just kept on laughing to herself.

"Okay, now that everyone is here, lets start today's challenge." Chris announced to everyone in the room. Skell cleared his throat to grab Chris's attention. "Oh, right. This young man we have here is Skell. He's going to be the secondary host for this season." Chris explained but didn't look pretty amused about it. "Say hi Skell."

"Hello everyone, it's a pleasure to meet you all." Skell gave everyone low bow. Everyone in the room just stared at him all having mixed feelings about having a new host.

"He was supposed to be here on the first day but he wasn't able to make it on time." Chris explained to them. "He'll be the one in charge on keeping a close eye on you guys while you are all in virtual reality. I could be doing it myself but I prefer to watch over you guys from the comfort of my control panel. Now, with that out of the way, let me explain today's challenge." Chris pressed a button on the panel.

"Hey Chris, can I handle this one for now? I mean it is my first day on the job here so what do you say?" Skell suggested as he gave off a sweet looking smile.

"Yeah Chris, why not let mister handsome here the spotlight." Lucette added as he stared at Skell dreamily. Ginger gave Lucette another swift smack to the back of the head. "Ow...are you always going to do that?" She asked as she faced towards Ginger all the while rubbing the back of her head. The latter just gave her a shrug with a sly looking grin.

"That sounds like a splendid idea Chris. Why not let the new host a shot and see what happens from there." Kazuo added as he gave a small smile.

"Ugh, fine. He'll handle things from here." Chris rolled his eyes. "If things go south from here I'm blaming it all on you." Chris soon sat down on his chair with his arms crossed.

"Alright! I'll make sure I won't disappoint!" Skell assured as he gave off a huge smile. "Now, onto the challenge!" He exclaimed as he motioned for the everyone to look towards the monitor that showed an ancient magic sigil laid across an open field. "Today's challenge is called the umm..." He looked back towards Chris. The host just shook his head before answering.

"The Silent Night."

"The Silent Night!" He repeated. "If last challenge your job was to raid a castle this time around you'll be the ones being raided! The rules are simple, all you have to do is to be the last ones standing against the Celestial army. Alternatively, you can also win by slaying the raid bosses that each team will encounter."

"Wait, you mean to tell us we will be defending against three different armies all at once?" Dylan said in surprise.

"Well not necessarily. You see, each team will be stationed in different locations and each location will be defending against a different army." Skell motioned for Chris to press a button on the panel. Chris faking a smile pressed a button on the panel to reveal a wide aerial view of the grassy plain where the sigil was. Three different spots were highlighted in the teams respective colors.

"We'll start off with the red team." The camera view soon zoomed in on the red marker. On screen now showed the same castle that was used from their last challenge. "Since the Red Dragons were the winners of the last challenge they will be defending themselves here in Kaiser's castle!" The castle on screen looked to be utter ruin due to the previous challenge. "And they will take on Lunaris, the Twilight Princess and her Lunar mages." On screen now showed a girl with pale skin and silver hair wearing a light silver breast plating and silver skirt. Covering her arms and legs looked to be silver chainmail. On her back was a long purple cape and attached to her waist looked to be the handle of a sword with the grip colored in a dark blue.

"The weapon that you gain from defeating her is called Lunala the Twilight rapier." Skell explained to them as Lunaris on screen drew out her sword to reveal a thin, sharp, silver blade that seemed to glisten slightly. The sword soon caught Alice's attention for she seem very interested in the weapon.

"Question. Is her weapon by any chance linked to the moon in any way?" Alice asked suddenly. "I mean it is called the twilight rapier." She further added.

"Well, the answer to that question is obviously yes. They are called the Celestial army for a reason." Skell replied. "Now, may I continue?" Alice only nodded in response. "Okay. Now, onto the our second placers; The Yellow Chocobos." The view on screen returned to the aerial view of the open plain, only this time, two team markers is what remains. "The Yellow Chocobos will be defending themselves here in the fortress." The camera view zoomed in on the blue marker to reveal a large wooden fortress with log walls all ending with sharp points surrounding a large stone mansion-like building with a tiled roof. Standing on each corner of the walls are tall towers over looking everything insight.

"The Yellow Chocobos will be defending themselves against Daniela, Crescent General and her cavalry the Crescent Knights." On the large monitor now shows a heavily armor clad female with her silver hair escaping from the gaps of her helm. She was shown riding on an armored horse wearing thick plating. She held proudly on one hand a long silver halberd and on the other a large silver shield with patterns on its front in the shape of the moon. "The weapon you gain from her is called Dana, the Crescent Halberd."

"Hm, the place looks doable. A couple of high places to set up any range attack, durable enough walls, and a strong enough gate to stop attackers." Dylan pointed out every strong point he could find. "With my genius strategy, a place like this wouldn't be to difficult to work around." He gave a confident looking grin.

"Whatever you say captain." Blake said jokingly as he laughed quietly to himself. Dylan however didn't seem to notice him.

"Okay. Now, onto our last placers; The Blue Nagas." The monitor soon returned to the aerial view of the plains once more only having the blue marker left. "The Blue Nagas will be defending themselves here in this umm...I'm sorry but you'll be placed here in this farm area." The monitor soon showed a large area surrounded by wooden fencing. In the middle of it is a large wooden house with a flat roof, a large barn placed near it, a single silo standing just behind the barn, and an old windmill placed on the other side of the house.

"Oh come on. How is that fair?" Ginger complained as she saw the setting. "Do you seriously want us to lose?"

"Yeah, I agree. Do you really expect us to survive there?" Paris added in as well. "We might as well be standing right out in the open." She crossed her arms.

"There is nothing much I can do. You guys lost the first challenge thus giving you guys the shit end of the stick." Skell explained to them as he raised his hands up defensively. "Well, that is what Chris told me in his office."

"Are you kidding me Chris? What kind of ruling is that!" Ginger complained as she looked towards Chris. The host just gave her a sinister looking grin all the while chuckling to himself.

"It makes for better drama." Chris says smiling. "And besides, each team will be given an hour or two to prepare for the oncoming battle." He added. "Also, there is one more thing Skell forgot to explain. The challenge will be held in the dead of night to give the challenge a more ominous feel." The host chuckled slightly.

"I was getting to that!" Skell gave Chris a stern look. "Anyways, the Blue Nagas will be facing off against Selena, the Moon Jester and her Midnight Assassins." On the large monitor now shows another female only this time wearing a complete jesters outfit in the alternating colors of gold and purple. She had a wicked smile on her face as she stares into the camera with piercing blue eyes. She held tightly in both of her hands a comically large scythe with the pole bent slightly outwards and blade shining in a pale silver color.

"The weapon you gain from defeating her is called Silvia, the Moon Reaver." Skell explained to them. "Now, with that out of the way, any questions before we begin?" Skell asked as he scanned the around the room. He soon took notice of Dylan raising his hand. "Yes Dylan?"

"Are there going to be any more weapon drops or chests like last time?" Dylan asked.

"Well, for the Red Dragons there are still chests hidden deep in the castle that may or may not contain anything useful. For the rest, you'll all just have to wait and see." Skell answered.

"Are we allowed to leave our bases and maybe even interrupt the enemy team?" Kazuo asked this time around.

"I'm sorry but once you leave the premises of your base you are automatically disqualified from the challenge." Skell answered as well. After Kazuo asked his question no else asked any. "Okay, lets get this challenge rolling then." The new host smiled as everyone got inside their pods. As the last contestant got inside their pod, only Chris and Skell were left with the camera slowly zooming in on them.

"So, what do you think?" Skell asked Chris with a confident looking smile.

"Eh, could be worst." Chris rolled his eyes. "Now what are you waiting for? Get inside the pod so that I can officially start the challenge." He crossed his arms.

"Sheesh, you don't have to be so butt-hurt about it." Skell said jokingly as he got into his pod. As the new host got inside he soon fell into a deep sleep. A few seconds later the monitor came to life with Skell now in the virtual world standing in the open plains. His outfit was completely the same except he had a grey Viking helm on. With Chris now alone he gave off his signature smile as the camera closes in on him.

"Well there you have it our dear viewers. Today's challenge has now begun with the secondary host, Skell, keeping a close eye on our three teams." Chris took a dramatic pause. "Will the Red Dragons be our winners once more? Will Dylan's strategy be enough for the Yellow Chocobos to win? Or will the Blue Nagas surprise us by beating all odds stacked against them? Lets check in on Skell to find out more." Chris gave off a wide grin as he pressed a button on his panel. The scene soon jumped to where Skell was standing.

"Nice little Segway Chris." Skell commented. "Anyways before we look into our teams let me explain first where I am standing right now." The camera view soon panned upwards to reveal he was standing on the giant sigil that was shown earlier. The camera quickly returned to face Skell. "As you can see this sigil here is where the armies would spawn. A loud horn would start to play out to signify our teams that the onslaught has begun. What the contestants don't know is that the armies will work together and send in units from their respective armies to aid one another." Skell explained to the camera. "Now with that done lets check on the Blue Nagas first."

The secondary host flicked his fingers for his own holographic panel to appear. Skell's panel was more blue in color in comparison to Chris's red. As he pressed on his panel he was soon transported to the gates of the farm place where the Blue Nagas reside. From there, he could already notice the only barricade that they were able to muster up. Standing right in the middle of the entry way were a bunch of hay bales stacked up on top of each other. Looking a bit amused by what he saw, he walked over to the side in attempt to hop over the fence but stopped when an arrow landed right in-front of him.

"Hey!" Skell yelled angrily as he scanned the area. As his voice echoed in the open landscape, a loud howl was soon heard in return. Getting caught off guard, a hawk suddenly swooped down on to Skell trying to scratch and peck away at his face. "Ah shit! What the hell is happening here?" He yelled as he tried to block off the hawk with his arms. As he frantically tried to swing away at the hawk with his arms, another loud howl filled the area but before Skell could react he suddenly got pinned down. Looking up he was now face-to-face with a large wolf staring at him with its yellow eyes all the while growling at him.

"Umm h-hi." His voice trembled a bit as he tried his best to keep calm. As the wolf stared down on him with a low growl, a loud whistle sound was heard and the wolf soon got off of Skell. Quickly picking himself up, he got a few steps in away from the wolf before looking straight only to see Clint giving him a straight look with the hawk perched on his left shoulder

"It seems our security system works." Ginger's voice was suddenly heard off-screen. The view panning to the side soon showed Ginger walking towards the two with a grin on her face. The wolf soon hoped over the fence to stand by Clint's side. "So, what are you doing here Skell? I thought you and Chris would be watching over us back in reality." Ginger stated as she crossed her arms.

"Well, as the secondary host, I was tasked to personally see to what ever it is you guys are doing." Skell explained. "So where are the others?"

"Paris and Phoebe are inside the farm house while Nathan is in charge of scouting around the place." Ginger answered. Nathan suddenly came into view as he was shown in the background exiting the barn. Nathan taking notice of them just gave them a wave before walking off.

"Interesting. So what's the plan here?" Skell asked with a curious look as he pointed towards there hay stack.

"Oh that? That's just there to provide us with some cover. We plan on shooting them down before they could get close." Ginger explained.

"But you'll be up against assassins mostly. How will that work?" Skell questioned at their idea.

"Assassins are also lethal marksmen. They don't need to be near you to kill." Clint said in a rather serious tone.

"Well there's that and besides, there are still infantry to go through first. I've played quite a few video games myself and from what I could tell they usually start off with the cannon fodder first." Ginger added. Skell looked towards Clint to see if Ginger was right and the latter soon replied with a small nod.

"Hmm good to know you guys are making use on off your video game knowledge to give you all a slight chance on winning given the situation." Skell commented.

"Oh its not just a slight chance. We'll make certain of it." Ginger snapped back with confidence in her voice.

"Well good luck to that." Skell smiled. "Anyways, I'm off to talk with the Yellow Chocobos to see what they're up to. You'll all be notified when the battle starts when you hear a loud horn blow."

"Ain't that cliché." Ginger smirked.

"I know." Skell rolled his eyes. "Well, bye." The secondary host waved them off before pulling out his panel and pressing on it.

(Confessional)

Ginger: I hope Clint knows what he's doing. I got a good look at him when our base was announced and at first he wasn't at all interested but when our opponents got announced his mood suddenly switched to a more certain looking one. I may be not as hardcore of a gamer as he is but I trust in whatever plan he has in mind.

Clint: Assassins are only a threat if they're concealed and out of sight. Put them out in the open and they're just as deadly as a common soldier. This place might be ill suited for defending against a siege but I'll take it over a fortress if assassins are the biggest players.

Nathan: Assassins huh? Time to see if AI assassins are better than player who is an assassin.

(End Confessional)

The scene soon shifted to the outside of a tall fortress with the wooden gates closed and walls casting a tall shadow over him. Pressing on another button on his panel, the gates started to slowly open up. As the gap in-between the gates had gotten wide enough a bolt of dark lightning suddenly started zapping towards him but he was able to duck under the attack.

"Hey! What is up with you people and attacking randomly!" Skell yelled. As he looked in-front of him he soon took notice of Gelsey standing on the other side with her staff glowing with dark energy. Standing right beside her was Leonard holding onto his naginata tightly in an offensive stance.

"Oh, sorry Skell. I was surprised when the gates started opening so I prepared a spell to strike who ever was on the other side." Gelsey explained herself.

"Yeah, I would have struck you down if I hadn't notice it was you." Leonard lowered his stance as he returned his naginata on his back. "Now, tell us why you're here so that we can get back to what we were doing." He crossed both his arms

"I'm just here to check on how each team is preparing for the challenge." Skell explained. "Now tell me, what's the plan here? I don't see you guys placing down anything." He says as he looks around the empty courtyard.

"What's their to place? I suspected this place would be empty and turns out I was right." Leonard answered. "And as for our 'plan' its just Dylan barking out orders the moment we all got here." The tone in his voice sounded a bit angrier.

"Speaking about Dylan, where are the others? I don't see them anywhere." Skell asked.

"*sigh* Part of Dylan's plan was to split us all up. Me and Gelsey here were tasked with guarding the open courtyard, Blake and Lucette are up in one of there own individual towers, and both him and Kali are inside the fortress searching around for anything useful." Leonard explained. "I already told him it was a useless effort but all he did was glare back at me."

"Really now. Well, that is all I needed to know. You'll all be notified once the challenge starts with a loud horn blast." He brought out his panel once more. "Bye now." He waved at the two as he pressed on his panel.

"Okay. Bye!" Gelsey waved back with a smile before Skell disappeared.

(Confessional)

Leonard: *glares at the camera* I don't like taking orders from runts like Dylan. He thinks he's such a hotshot just because were in a world where nerds like him dominate. If he crosses me one more time I'll make sure he'll regret ever doing it.

Dylan: That Leonard, I've dealt with types like him before both in-game and out. I may be a laid back person normally but when it comes to a challenge I show how ruthless and serious I can be.

Lucette: *looks depressed* Dylan told me to take charge off one of the towers since I have bow but *pauses* I don't know how to use it. I wanted to tell him that I can't use it but given how he glared at Jag when he questioned him I just couldn't get myself to do it. I hope we don't lose this challenge or otherwise *gulps* I may be their target to be voted off.

Blake: Oh, I'm only here because I got bored. Guard duty is so boring, I rather lay out traps since at the least I can make use of my pranking skills *smiles*. If you're wondering as to why I was able to get away with doing this its because I have the ability to make copies of myself *chuckles*. Don't worry, I'll get back to my post once the challenge starts.

(End confessional)

Skell reappeared once more in-front of the other side of the outer walls of what once was Kaiser's castle. To his surprise the castle was much more in disarray then what he initially thought. The gate that was supposed to be towering over any would be army was completely shattered into pieces with a large ballista bolt stuck on the ground outside. As Skell walked through the broken gateway, he was in utter shock in what he saw inside.

"Dear god, is this what happened last challenge?" He says as he saw scattered dead bodies off soldiers all over the place with the walls and ground still stained in blood. Broken swords, spears, and shields lay a waste around the castle courtyard. "I can only imagine what the inside of the castle will look like." He soon started walking towards the castle.

As he got inside the castle, he soon gagged up at what he saw and smelled. The scene inside was still the same when Kazuo and Derek first got inside save for the fact that Alice and Laren were sitting on the edge of the fountain. The former was just minding her own business by inspecting her dagger while the latter just sat there merrily swinging her legs all the while humming. Alice, now taking notice of Skell, spoke up.

"I see we have a visitor." She pointed her dagger towards Skell. "What brings you here?"

"Oh, Hi Skell!" Laren smiled as she saw him as well.

"Man you guys are ruthless." Skell stated as he walked in. "I never expected this place to be such a mess."

"Thanks. I worked hard to do all this." Alice said calmly as she sheathed her dagger. "Also, that little display outside was made by our team."

"Yup! She was awesome!" Laren said happily. Skell's eyes widened in knowing that only one person did all this and that same person was in-front of him no doubt.

"Damn. Good thing I didn't apply to be a contestant." Skell started. "Anyways, I'm here to ask you guys about your game plan. I did this for all the teams and only you guys are what's left." He explained. "So what is it then?"

"Game plan? If you mean by us just doing whatever we wish then yeah that's our plan." Alice answered.

"What do you mean? Didn't you guys huddle up or something to discuss about strategy and stuff?" Skell asked in confusion.

"I wish. Janet tried to form a plan for us but Kazuo suddenly walked out on us followed by Derek." Alice explained to him. "She tried reasoning with them but Kazuo just gave a back handed wave before entering the throne room while Derek just completely ignored her and climbed up the stairs behind us." She let out a deep sigh. "We may be a team but we sure as don't act like one." She looked up to meet Skell's gaze. "Anything else you want to ask?"

"What happened to Tristan then? He's also part of the team, right?" Skell responded with another question.

"Oh him? Both he and Janet tried to talk some sense onto the other two. Tristan followed Derek while Janet marched in towards the throne room to follow Kazuo." Alice scoffed. "If I were her I would just give up on him. If he wants to play a dangerous game then let him." She said coldly.

"Okay. What about you Laren? What do you feel about the situation?" Skell asked as he turned to face Laren.

"I don't know really. I just find it odd that we're all ready at each others throats when the season has just recently started." Laren pouted. "I just hope things get better in the future." She forced a small smile.

"I see. Well, that is all I needed to know. You will all be notified once the challenge starts with a loud horn blast." He pulled out his panel for the last time. "Well, good luck!" He waved before disappearing and leaving the two alone.

"So." Alice started the moment Skell disappeared. "You really think things would get better?"

"I certainly think so!" Laren answered with a huge grin. "I mean you are warming up to me as a start." She teased.

"Shut up." Alice said as she looked away from her.

The scene soon returned to the open field where the large sigil was with Skell standing right out in the open. The camera soon zoomed in on him as he bore a huge smile.

"Well, there you have it our dear viewers. A close look as to how our teams will be preparing for upcoming challenge." He took a pause with a big smile. "We still have about half an hour left before the sigil would be activated so far now lets see what they are up to." He was shown now pressing on his panel before the camera view shifted.

* * *

(Yellow Chocobos)

The scene that was now shown was back at the Yellow Chocobos fort. The camera now started zooming in closer to one of the tall towers that was towering over the front gate. Inside the tall tower was Lucette who looked very anxious about what's to come as she held tightly onto her silver bow. As she stood their trembling slightly as her thoughts were racing by thousands of miles a minute, she soon started to hear someone climbing up her tower snapping her back to reality.

"Hey Lucette! I'm coming up!" Blake's voice was heard from the ladder leading up to her perch.

"B-blake?" She stammered in surprise as she saw him climbing up. As Blake finally reached the top of the tower, he soon climbed inside and sat on the wooden flooring with his back pressed to the wall.

"Whew, that was a tall climb." Blake says as he took in a deep breath. "So, how are things?" He smiled.

"What are you doing here? Once Dylan finds out you are up here he might get very angry at you." Lucette said in a worried tone.

"Nah I doubt he'll notice I left my tower." He reassured.

"What do you mean by that?" Lucette tilted her head a bit. Blake just pointed towards his tower. As Lucette looked towards the tower across from her she soon noticed that another Blake was standing there. "What? How are you able to do that?"

"Easy. I gave myself the ability to make copies of myself." Blake explained. "Though I can only have a limit of having two copies at a time."

"If that's so then how can I be sure that you're real then?" She questioned. Blake just gave the young girl wide grin before standing up.

"Watch." Blake says before turning around to face his tower. The Blake copy soon turned to face towards him with an arrow pointed at him.

"Umm Blake? What are you doing?" Lucette asked with as she faced Blake with a confused look. Without giving out an answer, the arrow that was pointed at him soon took off and shot him directly on to his chest. Blake suddenly fell over backwards hitting the wooden wall hard. "OH MY GOD! BLAKE!" She yelled as she crouched down beside him. As she got a closer look at him she soon took notice of the wide grin he had on his face all the while chuckling to himself.

"Did I get ya?" Blake said jokingly as he laughed silently to himself. Lucette however didn't find his little stunt funny for she was genuinely terrified for him.

"This isn't funny Blake!" Lucette scolded him with her voice raised up a bit. "I was seriously afraid that you got seriously injured before the challenge could start."

"Relax, my clones are just illusions. What ever my clones can do have no real effect." Blake tried to reassure her.

"Still! What if you got shot by a real arrow and I couldn't save you from dying and you disappeared? If that happens the I would be left alone doing something that I can't do causing us to lose and...and..." Lucette started to tear up a bit. "*sobs* I don't want to go!" She started crying a bit louder now while she covered up her face with her hands.

Blake, seeing Lucette cry, started feeling very guilty about what he did. "I'm sorry." He said a bit solemnly. "I didn't intend for this to happen. I thought pulling a prank on you would help pass the time but I never imagined it would end up like this." He soon fixed his position in order to sit up straight before placing a hand on Lucette's shoulder. "Now please, stop crying. Cute girls like you shouldn't be like this." He said with a small smile.

Lucette, hearing his words, started to lighten up a bit for her sobbing started to slowly stop. "*hic* Wh-what did you just say?" She said weekly while still rubbing the tears away from her eyes.

"Oh umm *clears throat* I uhh said to let me make it up to you." Blake lied as he felt a bit flustered about his situation. "You said you can't do something right? So what is it?" He asked trying to change the topic.

"I uhh don't know how to use a bow well." She answered as she wiped away the last remaining tears in her eyes.

"Perfect! Wait no, not perfect I mean umm let me teach you how to use a bow while we still have some time to make it up to ya. Is that okay with you?" Blake offered.

"Okay." Lucette nodded.

"Great! Now..." Blake soon started to teach Lucette how to use a bow properly.

(Confessional)

Lucette: Did Blake just call me cute? *blushes* I didn't expect something like that come from him all of a sudden.

Blake: Dear lord what have I done? Stupid guilt trips got me saying random stuff that I don't mean...Don't get me wrong now! Lucette is cute and all and I can admit to that but...ah screw it! *sighs* I wonder how things will work out for me now?

(End Confessional)

The scene now changed to inside the stone building with Dylan and Kali walking throughout it's hall. The two appeared to be busy looking for something inside.

"Dylan, are you sure there is something hidden in this here fort? We've already searched everywhere!" Kali complained as she looked very tired. "We don't even know how much time we have left before the challenge begins."

"Don't worry about it. We'll be fine." Dylan assured his tired companion. "And besides, we're at the top most floor already. We just need to search the last few rooms up here before calling it quits."

"Ugh, fine." Kali replied. The two soon started to search around the rooms on the floor they are in with little to no success until they reached the final door at the end of the hall.

"One more room to go." Dylan pointed out as he grabbed onto the doors knob. As he tried to open the door it let out a clicking noise as he tried to turn the knob and wouldn't open up. With excitement in his eyes he let out a huge grin before backing away from the door. "I think we're on to something here."

"But how are we going to get in though? The doors locked." Kali asked.

"Easy. We break the door down." Dylan answered as he pulled out his sword.

"Are you sure that would work?" Kali tilted her head a bit.

"Normally it wouldn't but we're in a virtual world so..." Dylan trailed off as he prepared his sword for a swing; the blade of his sword was wrapped in dark energy. "Here goes nothing." He swung at the door and it soon shattered to pieces. "Well, that was easy." He says as he stepped inside the room. Kali followed suit.

Inside was just a regular small room with two square windows right in-front them allowing sunlight to seep in. At the left side of the room is a couple of bookshelves filled with books of varying colored covers. Placed in the middle of the room is a small wooden table with a chair placed behind it. On top of the table was an out of place long dark grey case which caught both of their interests.

"Hmm, what could be in this?" Dylan said as he approached the case with an intrigued look. As he got a good look at the case he soon noticed a button on the case's lock. Pressing the button, the lid of the case flipped right open to reveal its content.

"What's in it?" Kali asked as she peered over Dylan's shoulder. "Wait what? What is that doing here?" She says with confused look.

Inside the case Dylan opened held a bolt action rifle with a long metallic-grey barrel with a dark-brown stock and body. The rifle came with a separate scope and bayonet that have yet to be attached to the actual gun itself. Dylan lifting it up from its case noticed it didn't came with a magazine or any place to hold bullets instead it just held a small knob at its side with a small window right above it.

"I wonder if this thing even works." Dylan pondered as he pulled back on its bolt. He locked the bolt back in and with a click it sounded as if he loaded a bullet into its chamber. "Okay...was not expecting that." He says with his eyes widen. "Now I'm curious if this thing even shoots." He pointed the barrel of the gun towards the window. Pulling on the trigger it let out powerful shot that rang across the room. The recoil of the gun was strong enough to knock Dylan down.

"Dylan, are you okay?" Kali rushed beside him.

"Yeah I'm good." Dylan answered as he stood right back up. "But damn does this thing feel powerful." He commented on the rifle he held. As soon as he said this, Chris' voice suddenly rang out.

"Congratulations Dylan! You have obtained Latona, The Multirifle!" Chris announced to them. "If you are wondering as to why such a modern age weapon exists here its because I say so. Now, onto what It can do." Chris paused for a bit. "This rifle can fire a multitude of different shots. You can select the ammo type by turning the small knob at the side. The window above it will indicate what shot you are using by showing a color. The colors are pretty much generic to its element so no need to wrap your head in guessing to much about it." He explained to them. "The drawback to this weapon is that the kickback is very powerful and each shot must be bolted in manually. That is all." His voice soon faded out,

"Well, that explains why there is no slot for a magazine." Said Dylan as he placed the rifle back in its case. He soon closed the case and carried it with him. "C'mon, lets go see if anyone wants this." He started heading towards the doorway.

"After all that effort in finding this, your just going to give it away?" Kali questioned him.

"If I learned anything from playing RTS games is that I should give my units the most optimal gear possible." Dylan answered as he stepped out of the room. He stopped in place before looking back towards Kali. "And besides, guns aren't really my style." He stated before continuing to walk on out. Kali soon followed him out.

(Confessional)

Kali: That Dylan...I really don't understand him. One moment he's a ruthless leader but the next he'll be much more considerate. I'm starting to wonder if he's someone that can be trusted really. If this challenge and last challenge is anything to go by, he'll openly turn on you if it means his plans will go through.

Dylan: Don't get me wrong guys. I'm open in using guns when I'm in a shooter. Heck, rifles are actually my most preferred gun type. The main reason as to why I don't want to use it is mostly because of its absurd recoil. That thing is more of a hindrance than an actual asset.

(End Confessional)

* * *

(Blue Nagas)

The scene soon shifted to inside the farm house where the Blue Nagas are defending. Inside the farm house was just a single wooden table with wooden chairs placed on each side of the table. Seated on one of the chairs was Phoebe who looked very anxious about what's to come with Paris seated right across from her keeping a close eye on her. Elegant violin music was heard in the background for her female doll was standing right behind Phoebe while playing the violin.

"Eeep." Phoebe shuddered as she heard the loud gun shot that Dylan fired. "W-was that a g-gun? P-please tell me th-the challenge doesn't involves guns." She trembled a bit.

"Don't worry Phoebe, things will be alright." Paris reassured her with a calming voice. "Skell said that we will be informed if the challenge starts with a loud horn blast. Besides, Ginger probably dropped one of her guns by accident or something and it misfired."

"O-okay." Said Phoebe as she calmed down a bit. The female doll started to play an entirely different song in which calmed down Phoebe even more.

"So tell me Phoebe, you really like violin music huh?" Paris asked as she pointed towards the female doll.

"Y-yeah, the sound of a v-violin helps soothe me." Phoebe explained with a soft smile. "I-I can even p-play it."

"Really now?" Paris looked intrigued. "Why don't you play one song then."

"I-I don't know, I'm n-not all that g-good at it." Phoebe said while looking down.

"Oh c'mon, pretty please." Paris insisted.

"O-okay." Phoebe hesitantly answered. Without saying a word the doll suddenly stopped playing the violin and gave it to Phoebe. Phoebe, now standing up, placed the violin on her shoulder with the bow on top of the strings. With one fluid motion she started playing the same song the doll was playing and picked up where it left off.

"Wow." Paris said completely amazed by her. Phoebe just kept on playing the violin until she finally finished the song. "You were simply amazing Phoebe! Where did you learn to how to play the violin like that?"

"Um, m-my older sister thought me how. I asked her to t-teach me so that I c-can do duets with her." Phoebe answered.

"You really admire your older sister that much huh? So tell me, what's her name then?" Paris asked.

"H-her name's Winona." Phoebe answered as well.

"Well, tell Winona then that she did an excellent job in teaching you." Paris smiled. "Now c'mon, play some more!"

"O-okay." Phoebe said with a small smile. She soon started to play the violin once more.

(Confessional)

Paris: Phoebe is such an adorable teammate to have. Knowing that she can play the violin makes her even cuter! I wonder if I could get her to play for me during my recitals once this is all over?

(End confessional)

The scene soon cut to outside the farm house where the rest of the remaining Blue Nagas where. Clint was shown sitting on the front porch with Silver laying next to him while his hawk was flying high up in the air circling the entire place. Nathan and Ginger on the other hand were shown standing right out in the open and looked to be talking with one another.

"So, did you find anything else useful to use?" Ginger asked.

"Nope, I searched the barn and it was completely empty." Nathan answered. Ginger just let out a heavy sigh.

"Just our luck. Given that gun shot we heard a while ago, the other teams must have found something useful." Ginger looked to be pretty down. "Can we really defend ourselves here? I know I told Skell that we can do it but I'm starting to have my doubts."

"I'm sure it'll be fine." Nathan assured her. "There is not a lot of places for enemies to sneak up on us so there is at least that."

"Yeah but same thing goes for us. Not a lot of places for us to hole up in once things go south." Ginger reminded him.

"Still, we just need to outlast the other teams. If we can do that then we'll be safe." Nathan said back.

"That's easier said then done." Ginger crossed her arms. "I mean our team really wasn't meant to be sieged on. We're better of attacking someone rather then being attacked."

"Then we'll use that to our advantage." Clint suddenly spoke up as he approached the two.

"What do you mean?" Ginger shot Clint with a confused look.

"We'll spot out the head and cut her off." Clint said with a straight look. "We'll secure ourselves that way."

"But we're not allowed to leave this place, how are we supposed to do that?" Nathan questioned him. Clint shot him back with an even gaze.

"We don't have to leave. Our target is an assassin, she'll come to us." He said to Nathan.

"I see, so we hold them off until the big boss arrives." Ginger let out a sigh. "Well, if its the only shot we have at winning this, It might as well be our best bet." A loud horn blast was soon heard in the distance. "I'll go tell the other two about the new plan. Lets just hope it works out well in our favour." She soon ran inside the farmhouse leaving the two boys alone.

Clint's hawk let out a cry signaling the two that the first waves of enemies are getting close. Clint drew out his bow and readied an arrow while his wolf growled right behind him. Nathan did the same and pulled out his Katana as he raised it high.

"Its do or die time I guess." Nathan stated as he clasped on to his sword tight.

(Confessional)

Nathan: I hope Clint's plan works out well for us. I don't want our team to be in the eliminations two times in a row.

Phoebe: G-Ginger came r-rushing in and t-told us that the p-plan has been changed. *gulps* I j-just hope we d-don't lose again.

(End confessional)

* * *

(Red Dragons)

The scene changed to inside the throne room of the castle the Red Dragons were defending showcasing what happened a few minutes before horns started. Inside the throne room were Kazuo and Janet that looked to be arguing with one another. The former was shown sitting on the throne imitating the pose Kaiser was in the challenge before while the latter stood at the bottom of the steps with her arms crossed.

"I'm being serious here Kazuo, If we want to win like last time we have to work as a team." Janet insisted but Kazuo looked like he wasn't even paying attention. "Are you even listening to me?"

"Oh, sorry, I was just busy admiring your persistence is all." Kazuo gave off an amused smirk. "I really like how the choices I made so far has impacted the team. I wonder how far the butter fly effect can take this."

"What are you even going on about Kazuo?" Janet questioned his motives.

"You know, the butter fly effect. The theory where every choice, no matter the degree, will lead to a major change in outcomes." Kazuo explained with enthusiasm in his voice.

"I know what the butter fly effect is! I just want to know why you are so concerned and head strong about it." Janet argued back at him. Kazuo just gave the armor clad girl a slight chuckle before speaking up.

"You know, I get asked that same question a lot." He took a moment to pause all the while baring a huge grin. "Every time I get asked that question I always tell them this; I see it as a way of life, not just some simple theory." He shot Janet a serious look. "And funnily enough, ever since I made it dictate everything I do, I was able to discover things about myself that I didn't know I had in me. Does that satisfy you?"

"So when you told Chris that you do stuff just to see what would happen you were actually serious." Janet said as she looked down. "If that's the case then, why don't you use that logic to see what would happen if you decided to help out now? Even if you made enemies." She suggested.

"You do have a point." Kazuo nodded. "But from where I see things, giving me this suggestion only opens up more choices for me to take with all of them having different effects." He stated. "Now I'm curious to see what would happen if I turned you down now."

Janet, finally having enough of him, just turned her back towards him with a scoff. "Good luck with that then." She said in a cold tone without even looking back. Janet soon walked out of the throne room leaving Kazuo sitting on his throne. A loud horn blast was soon heard off into the distance signaling that their time was up and the challenge has now begun.

"Lets see where this takes me." Kazuo grinned as he leaned back on his glorified chair

In an upper portion of the castle in the midst of long hallway was Tristan and Derek who's bodies were facing each other. Both of them were shown looking out a nearby window seeing the sun now setting over the horizon and the once blue sky slowly turn dark. From the distance they could see the large sigil radiating with magic as it prepares to call fort its armies

"Its time for us to group up with the others." Tristan said as he turned around to face the opposite direction. "Remember Derek, we may not all be in equal terms but we're the best shot you have in making it to merge." Tristan soon ran off leaving Derek alone.

Derek just stood there watching Tristan run off as his foot steps left tapping sounds that slowly started to get feint as he got even farther away. With the mechanic now out of sight, Derek turned around to face the other direction before walking off deeper into the hallway until he was no longer insight.

Back out into the open courtyard Tristan was now with the three female Red Dragon members. The entire place was covered in the dark night with only the light of the full moon shining above them. As all four of them ready themselves for what's to come, the faint sound of metal boots and horse galloping can be heard far out into the distance.

"Well, here they come." Janet says as she holds on to her spear tight. "Are you guys ready?"

"Oh please, the moon is what gave me my arsenal. Fighting under its light will only serve me better." Alice said proudly as she prepared her bow. The bow started to glow in a faint white glow as she held it out.

"There you go! You're now well prepared." Laren grinned as she finished enchanting Alice's weapon. Her pendant was glowing in a similar fashion. "I just hope holy magic would work well for ya."

"Okay enough of the rambling its time for some action." Tristan injected as he saw a glimpse of the army into the distance. Their battle cries were heard echoing out as well as their armor radiating in lunar light.

(Confessional)

Alice: Time to see which side the moon favors. Is it me, her acolyte, or the army she sends. *grins*

Janet: *sighs* Only four of us are willing to work together as a team. I'm starting to wonder if us winning the first challenge was just a matter of luck in all honesty.

Tristan: I really hope Derek comes to his senses soon and come down here to help. I think I get both him and Kazuo's idea about being separate since the goal is to survive the longest but who knows really what would happen if both of them get caught out.

(End Confessional)

* * *

The scene now returned to the Yellow Chocobos fortress where Blake was shown hiding behind the wall of his tower as he held on tightly to his bow. Loud banging and shaking was felt throughout his tower and walls for below the walls was the lunar army striking down the gate with a battering ram with silver blunt end while cannons were taking shots at the walls. The prankster tried to poke his head out to send out a couple shots but was forced to duck back in when arrows started flying towards him.

"Dammit!" He yelled as he ducked beneath his wall. A loud banging was felt once more as well as the sound of wood cracking was heard. "Guys! I'm pinned down up here. There's too many of them for me to try and shoot!" Blake called down to the others below him.

"Just hold on up there!" Dylan's voice answered him. "We're still a little bit busy down here!" The scene panned down to show Dylan and Leonard fighting off a few swordsmen.

"Where do they keep coming from!?" Leonard said as he cut down a swordsman with his naginata. Another one soon came charging towards him but he easily struck them down as well.

"They most likely climbed the wall on the other side." Dylan answered him as he blocked an oncoming sword swing. The rifle case he took from earlier was strapped around his back. "Hiya! I just hope sending in Kali and Gelsey was a good idea." He said as he pushed back the swordsman he was fighting. He soon lunged his sword forward to impale his opponent straight in the stomach.

"By the way, what's in that case you're carrying?" Leonard asked as he delivered a powerful kick to soldier that was charging at him causing the soldier to get knocked down. He soon drove his naginata into the soldiers chest.

"Even if I did tell you I doubt you'll believe me." Dylan replied as he cut down the last soldier that was currently in the courtyard. A loud crashing sound was soon heard as small bits of wood start flying everywhere. The two looking towards the gate soon saw it was completely smashed to bits with the rest of the army rushing in.

"Charge!" A female's voice was heard calling out for her soldiers to charge on in. Armor clad knights and spearmen all came charging in the downed gate with some cavaliers rushing in as well. Bringing up the rear of the charging soldiers was the raid boss Daniela raising her halberd high.

"Dammit. Fall back!" Dylan yelled as both he and Leonard retreated back into the fort. "Blake! Lucette! Try and find a way back in here for we can no longer hold them off!" He called out to both of them before slamming the doors shut for they were still up their towers.

"Shit." Blake muttered to himself as he heard Dylan's call. Collecting himself, he soon peaked over his wall to find an opening only to see Lucette's tower being climbed up by a few soldiers with the one leading already half way up. "Lucette!" He called out to see if she was still there but no response came. A couple soldiers hearing him soon looked towards his tower with some already rushing towards the ladder up. "Ah fuck it. I just hope this works." He hoped over the wall and landed on the platform connecting the two towers.

Inside Lucette's tower she was shown balled up in a corner shaking in fear as she held out her silver bow right in front of her. She soon felt the soldiers climbing up the ladder of her tower with the shaking progressively getting closer and closer. As it the soldier got closer to the top, Lucette readied an arrow in her bow and aimed straight at the only way in but her hands were shaking and couldn't point it straight. A few seconds later the soldier climbing up was now at the top with her.

"Eeep." She cried in shock as she let go of her arrow. The arrow she shot only managed to hit the wall behind the soldier. With no other options left, she raised her bow above her head and kept her eyes shut to prepare on what's to come next. As she sat there waiting she soon heard a couple arrows fly passed her followed by someone following down onto the ground below.

"Phew, made it." Blake's voice was heard from right beside her. Opening her eyes she soon saw Blake standing over her with his bow out.

"B-blake?" She said a bit weakly.

"Are you hurt anywhere?" He said out of concern as he crouched down. Lucette, seeing him, couldn't help but wrap her arms around his neck and started sobbing. "Umm Lucette? Umm we don't have time for this." He says as Lucette continued to cry. A few more soldiers were heard climbing up the ladder.

Lucette finally pulled away from him. "I-I'm sorry. I just f-felt the need to l-let it out." She said as she wiped away some tears from her eyes. "B-but I'm re-ready now!" She forced out a smile.

"Good. Since we need to give it our all if we want to make it out of here." Blake soon stood up and readied an arrow. He pulled back on his string and waited a bit before letting it loose the moment he saw the soldier climbing up pop his head over the entrance. The soldier soon fell down to the ground below with a metallic crushing sound.

"Don't worry, I'll give it my best!" Lucette replied with a much more genuine smile as she held out her staff this time around with the gem glowing with magic.

Cannon shots were last heard on-screen before the scene transitioned.

* * *

The scene changed to the farm place where the Blue Nagas are defending. The sound of men and horses charging were heard echoing throughout the area mixed with metal clanging, shots firing, and loud growling. The area on scene was littered with dead bodies of soldiers for all of them were being shot down by Ginger and Clint with the few making it close got cut down by Phoebe's male doll who was standing at the front while being accompanied by Clint's wolf Silver.

Standing guard right behind them was Nathan and Paris who held both their rapiers out as they were defending the other three from the assassins who snuck up from behind them. The formers collar though was noticeably glowing in a faint blue light. All of the assassins held scythes and daggers for weapons.

Helping them out was Phoebe's female doll who was playing a fine tune for them that looked to be empowering their weapons. Phoebe herself on the other hand was sitting in-between Clint and Ginger hiding behind the stack they made and she was notably shivering in fear.

"How are you holding up there Phoebe?" Ginger asked as she kept on shooting the soldiers charging at them. She soon ducked down behind the hey stack to reload her guns. "Is everything okay?"

"Y-yeah, I'm g-good." Phoebe replied with a soft tone. "Eeeek." She soon shuddered at the sound of an explosion.

"Sorry Phoebe, explosive shots." Ginger apologized before returning to keep on shooting.

"I know this is a bit random but do your dolls have a name?" Ginger asked suddenly.

"W-what?"

"You know, a name. Do they have names or something?" Ginger repeated her question. "Hold on." She says as she let loose a barrage of explosive shots sending the enemy back.

"Oh, th-that? Um, they d-do have names." Phoebe answered. "The m-male doll is named S-Savior while the f-female doll is named Violin."

"Aww, does are such cute names." Paris cut in as she over heard their conversation. She was shown pulling out her rapier from the chest of one the assassins causing him to fall over. Blood started to pool from underneath him. "Now that begs another question Phoebe, why dolls then? You could have done something like what Clint summons." She says as she parried away a scythe swing. She soon countered with a swift upwards slash sending the assassin stumbling back.

"Oh, that's b-because I like c-collecting dolls." Phoebe answered her as well. "I-It's a l-little hobby of mine." She added.

"Interesting. Well, glad you chose to summon dolls to fight for you then." Ginger said from beside Phoebe as she finished reloading her gun. "Your doll Savior here makes it feel like we're fighting with a complete team." The view panned a bit over the barricade to show the aforementioned doll successfully fighting off all the soldiers coming his way with the help of Silver. "Don't you think so too Clint?"

Clint just ignored her and shrugged his shoulders as he proceeded to shoot down a couple more charging soldiers with great accuracy.

"Hmph, he's just jealous that you have better summons." Ginger teased as she chuckled slightly while continuing to shoot. Clint just rolled his eyes and continued on firing as well.

"Umm guys? We have a problem here!" Nathan called out to them as he was shown backing off away from what he saw.

"Huh? What is it?" Ginger peered back to see what was going on. "What the..." She trailed off as she saw what was happening behind them.

Forming right behind them was a thick amounts of fog slowly shrouding everything in sight. As the fog thickens a silhouette started to appear that looked to be walking closer and closer to the group and had one hand on the hip while looked to be holding on to something from behind. It soon stopped and stared at them with glowing blue eyes.

"Hehehehe. Lets have some fun." A female voice was heard in an eerie tone. The fog lightened up a bit to reveal it was the raid boss Silvia standing right in-front of them with a demented looking smile.

* * *

The scene returned to the Red Dragons castle where Janet was shown doing her best to hold of as many soldiers as possible all the while avoiding magical bolts being fired at her. Standing right beside her was Tristan who was shooting down as many target as he can manage with the twin canons on his back while Alice and Laren who were standing behind the two did their best to pick off as many soldiers as well.

"Ha!" Janet yelled as she shoved her spear into a soldier's gut. She soon threw the soldier away with her gravity powers to send him flying towards a group of soldiers. She quickly swung her spear up high to take out a few more men. More soldiers started rushing towards her "Dammit, ha!" She yelled out as she threw away all the soldiers with a cosmic geyser. After that attack Janet looked very exhausted for she was already breathing in heavily.

"Janet! Right above you!" Tristan warned her. Janet looking soon noticed a couple archers up on the walls with arrows aimed for her. As they all fired down on her, Janet managed to jump out of the way with most off the arrows landing right where she stood.

"Gah!" She let out in pain as an arrow managed to clip her on the shoulder while she was in mid jump. She soon fell hard on to the ground for she lost control of herself and couldn't land on her feet. With her now down, the archers prepared their arrows once more to fire down on her.

"Oh no, Janet!" Tristan ran towards and shielded her from the arrows. The arrows hitting his mechanical suit and arm all bounced off him. "Take this!" He yelled at them as he fired multiple canon shots at the archers on the wall. The upper portion of the wall blew up to pieces taking down most of the archers with it but some managed to escape. "Dammit!" He roared at them but soon turned to face Janet. "Are you okay?" He held out his hand.

"Yeah I'm fine." Janet answered him as she took his hand to get up. "It was just- Tristan look out!" Janet shoved Tristan aside for soldier holding on to a spear was charging at them. She managed to stop the soldier from charging at them by pushing him back with her gravity push.

"Phew, that was close. Thanks!" Tristan thanked her.

"No problem." She smiled at him. "You know, I was about to say I was just reckless and that I owe you one for saving me but I guess that serves as payment." Janet said jokingly.

"Aww, I even had a favor to ask you as well." Tristan joked. "Nah, just kidding. I just didn't want us to lose by losing you this early."

"I don't know if I should take that as a compliment or as something else since it sounds like your okay with my dying later on." Janet crossed her arms.

"Hey! That's not what I meant!" Tristan argued back. Janet just gave him a soft chuckle in response. "What's so funny?"

"Will you guys cut it out!? We still have more enemies here!" Alice interjected as she was busy shooting arrows enchanted with holy magic. Each of the arrows that hit their mark caused the target to be ignited in white flames that seemed to drain away their life.

"Fine, we'll settle this on once this is all over." Tristan turned around and aimed his cannons to shoot out another barrage.

The scenery soon shifted to somewhere inside the castle where Derek was shown walking through a long hallway. He could hear off into the distance the fighting that was happening on the other side but couldn't care less to even run around and help. As he continued to walk on forward, he soon found his way out onto the castle garden where he so no one else in sight except for a lone girl wearing shining armor with her long silver hair flowing gently sitting by the edge of the fountain with her legs crossed. Keeping his guard up, he slowly walked forward to meet this person.

"Lovely evening, isn't it?" The girl asked as she noticed Derek approaching but suddenly stopped when she spoke. "Perfect night for a war might I add." She chuckled slightly. Derek just kept his cold gaze at her and didn't saying anything. "I'm guessing you're not much of a talker huh? Oh well, can't be helped. Its not like it would even matter." She laughed at him. Derek said nothing in response as he clenched his fists tightly.

"Hold on there boy, I don't want to fight just yet." She grinned. Derek, without any hesistation, charged towards her with his right arm pulled back. "Oh my, you really can't wait can you?" She says as she moved herself a bit to Derek's right to dodge his punch. Derek suddenly twisted his body around to strike her with his left elbow but she easily stopped him with one hand.

"You seriously have no manners do you?" She shook her head. "But then again I haven't even introduced myself so where are my manners?" She chuckled a bit. She suddenly moved her body to her right to use Derek's momentum to throw him into the water behind. "Anyways, my name is Lunaris. The General, Tactician, and Princess of this army." She introduced as she looked back into the water to face Derek. "So, what's yours?"

Derek came rushing out of the water looking angrier then normal as he came at her with another powerful punch but yet again was easily stopped when Lunaris grabbed hold onto his fist.

"You're not really going to give me the courtesy of your name huh? Oh well, its not like I'll even remember you." Lunaris laughed. Derek attempted to jab at her with his free hand but was forced to stop when Lunaris bent his arm with one hand motion. "You do know its really rude to not answer a royalty when they ask you politely, right?" Derek just kept a strong glare at her with his teeth showing.

"Don't worry though, I won't take it personally." She smiled at him. She suddenly pressed her free hand onto Derek's bare chest through the opening in his outfit. Seconds later a bright light suddenly seeped out from the gap between her hand and Derek's chest and he was suddenly sent flying backwards, smashing through the fountains center piece, and landing farther away from the fountain. Lunaris slowly walked towards where Derek landed all the while having sinister looking smile.

"As much as I enjoyed our little chat I really must be going now." She said in a rather sweet tone as she pulled out her rapier. The blade gently glistened underneath the moonlight as she drew it out. Derek, gritting his teeth hard, tried to get up but wasn't able to. "Good bye now! My men need me." Lunaris jabbed her rapier straight to where Derek's heart is. The latter's body flickered out only leaving behind a blood dripping sword.

The scene soon returned to the courtyard where the it was shown that the red dragons are winning and pushing the forces back. Tristan taking out large groups, Janet mowing down and throwing away anyone that was close, and Alice and Laren working together to snipe at all the archers and mages they could find up in the walls or on the ground. As they continued to fight off against the enemy, the doors to the castle suddenly creaked open. Janet, hearing the door, turned around to face who ever it was.

"Took you long enough Kaz...uo?" She said only to see Lunaris standing behind them.

"What's wrong Janet?" Laren asked as she turned to look as well. Her eyes soon widened to what she saw.

"Good evening. My name is Lunaris, it's a pleasure to meet you all." Lunaris smiled at them. In the background people chanting 'All hail the Princess!' echoed out with others cheering. "So, who wants to die first?"

"Akh der'mo, prosto nasha proklyataya udacha." Alice cursed in her native Russian tongue.

"What did you just say?" Laren asked in confusion.

"Take a hint." Alice replied.

(Confessional)

Alice: Yeah...I didn't intend to speak that way, I said it by accident. I normally speak Russian okay! Kucha idiotov, nazyvaya menya chem-to melkim...Nevermind what I just said.

(End Confessional)

Meanwhile in the real world, Chris and Skell were both shown watching the events play out through the large monitor. Both of whom were watching very closely on everything that was happening to the contestants. As they sat there and watched, three bright flashes of red light flashed on to their faces.

"Damn…" Skell was a loss for words to what he just witnessed. "Is this even fair? She took them out so easily!"

Chris just chuckled quietly to himself while still seated on his chair. "They won last challenge right? It's only fitting for them to have the hardest challenge." He started laughing once more.

* * *

The scene returned to the Yellow Chocobos fortress, the event shown took place a couple minutes before the Daniella and her army barged in through the front gate of the fortress.

Both Kali and Gelsey where shown being cornered and surrounded by a couple assassins and soldiers. The formerheld her arm blade out in-front of her while her other hand held her khukiri in a back-handed position right below it. While the latter just stood behind Kali with her staff held out right in-front of her with the ball tip glowing with dark magic.

"Uh, Gelsey? Are you done preparing your spell yet?" Kali says as she blocked a sword swing with her arm blade from an on-coming soldier. She swung her arm to the side to expose the soldier for an attack with her other blade but the soldier managed to move out of the way in time.

"Almost! Just hold them off a little longer!" Gelsey replied before continuing to concentrate on her magic.

"Hurry it up then!" Kali said back. She soon managed to back-step a scythe swing from one of the assassins and instantly punished him by doing a quick jab to his chest with her arm blade. She quickly pulled out her blade and instantly followed it up with a strong kick to knock him far back.

Another assassin came in to attack Kali from behind with his dagger raised but Kali was able react in time and cut him down before he could attack. Immidiately after, a different soldier started to rush her with a spear in hand while she was distracted in which managed to pierce her in the side.

"Gah...dammit!" She coughed out some blood before pulling away. As she pulled herself away from the tip of the spear she immidiately struck down the soldier with her khukiri with a quick downward jab killing him instantly. "Ugh, damn..." She said weakly as she fell down to her side. The few remaining enemies all rushed towards her to finally finish her off but were suddenly struck down with dark lightning.

"Hah!" Gelsey yelled as she finally finished preparing her spell to strike down the remaining enemies. All the enemies that got struck screamed in pain until the spell ended. They all fell down simultaneously with smoke flowing out of their bodies. "Oh no, Kali!" She instantly ran towards her side.

"Took you long enough..." Kali said weakly as she attempted to sit up straight. She suddenly fell back down to her side for the pain was to hard to bare. "Ugh.." She groaned. A loud crashing sound was heard in the other side coupled with loud yelling.

"Kali, we need to get out of here! I think they managed to break in!" Gelsey urged her to get up. As Kali tried to get up once more she instantly stumbled down back to the ground.

"Ugh, its no use. I can't even move in this state." Kali let out a deep sigh. "Just go back to the others without me. Bringing me with you will just slow you down."

"A-are you sure? What about you? How will you handle yourself?" Gelsey looked worried for her.

"I'll be fine. I've got a couple more tricks up my sleeves." Kali reassured her. "And besides, the goal of the challenge is to survive the longest. As long as one of us is still alive we still have a good shot in winning this." The sound of footsteps was heard running towards them. "Now go! Before they catch you."

"Okay. Good luck." Gelsey said before running of into the back entrance of the fort. Kali, now alone, just laid their thinking to herself.

"I hope this works." She mumbled to herself as she focused carefully on what she was about to do. After a few seconds, she was able to conjure up a small shadow space for herself to conceal her from the charging enemies. As she laid there for a few seconds she could feel herself getting healed up for the bleeding stopped but she still couldn't move properly for the wound was still there. "Damn...I guess healing doesn't mean regeneration." She said quietly to herself as a few soldiers ran passed her. "I hope this thing lasts long enough."

The scene now changed to following Gelsey running through the forts hallway as she desperately tried to find her way back with the others. As she kept on running and running, taking random corners, and climbing up sets of stairs all in attempt to not get caught by the enemies who were already searching inside. Keeping up with the pace she was doing, she managed to find her way to a large central hallway in one of the top floors. Following the long hallway she ended up being seen by a group of five knights who were up there in the floor with her.

"There's one. Get her!" One of the knights pointed out as they saw her. All of them started charging at her with their sword and shields raised.

"Damn it." She silently muttered to herself as she raised up her staff. Moments later she threw a sphere of dark magic towards the knights causing a small explosion to occur to knock them all back. With all of them now down, she quickly ran passed them and headed down a set of stairs at the end of the hall.

"I hope they're still okay." Gelsey thought to herself as she ran quickly down the staircase. As she reached the floor beneath, she quickly took the stairs down even further to go another floor down. Now at the end of the long flight of stairs, she now found herself on the first floor of their base for only a long hallway was ahead of her and no more stairs leading down.

"I got to find them." Gelsey said to herself as she ran down the hall.

The scene now jumped cut to the end of the hall where Leonard and Dylan are shown surrounded by groups of heavily armored knights raising their towering shields in front of them in order to keep them in. Opposing the two was Daniella who was still riding on top of her armored stallion. Every enemy soldier in the room was cheering her on along side the sound of the knights banging their shields on the ground.

"You two! Lay down your arms and I might just spare you both with a quick death." Daniella commanded the two with her halberd pointed at them. The soldiers started to cheer her own louder.

"Sorry babe, but I'm not going to give up to you that easily." Leonard answered back with a piercing glare. He held on to his naginata tightly as he did.

"No can do either, I have a track record to keep." Dylan gave Daniella a wide grin. The long sword in his hand was completely wrapped in dark magic.

Daniella scoffed at them. "Then so be it." She said in a calm tone. With a quick motion, she slammed her halberd downwards, striking the ground, in order to create a pale silver shockwave heading towards the two. The attack exploding in-between the two caused them to get knocked back in opposite directions from each other. Daniella quickly followed up her attack by making her horse charge towards the downed Leonard. Her horse leapt forward as they neared him.

"Hah!" Daniella yelled as she lunged her halberd downwards towards Leonard using her horse's momentum. The latter reacting in time managed to use the long pole of his naginata to redirect her attack. The spear tip of Daniella's weapon just landed inches away from his head.

"Hey! Over here!" Dylan announced as he was running towards her with his sword pulled back for a swing. As he got close enough he soon swung his sword sideward but was easily stopped by Daniella's shield.

"Is that the best you got?" She taunted him. Dylan just had a smirk on his face

"Not even close." He says as he twists his body around to continue his attack and struck her in back. Daniella got knocked off of her horse and fell straight to the ground below. As Dylan reached the end of his swing, the long sword he held suddenly became two short swords both being held in different hand positions; one backhanded and the other forehanded.

"You okay?" Dylan held out one of his hands for Leonard to grab.

"Hmph, like that will kill me." Leonard answered him as Dylan pulled him back up. He picked up his weapon from the ground and held it tightly in an offensive stance.

"Heh, the two of you are much more resilient then both of you look." Said Daniella as she was shown grabbing on to her horse's reins. "Makes things a lot more interesting." She added. Daniella was able to mount her horse once more.

"Why don't you get off that horse and fight us like a true warrior you make yourself out to be." Leonard pointed his naginata at her. "Unless you're afraid of getting your ass kicked." He taunted.

"Watch your mouth kid. Unless you want to see yourself six feet under." Daniella retaliated before charging towards them with her Halberd pointed forward and her shield raised high. As she got close, she thrusts her weapon forward towards Leonard.

Reacting fast enough, Leonard was able to side step her thrust causing the attack to hit the shield of the knight behind him. Daniella quickly swung her weapon around for the axe blade to hit Leonard instead. Leonard attempting to block her swing with his naginata but was just shoved aside for the force of the attack was to much to handle.

"Ugh." Leonard groaned as he landed hard on the stone ground.

"Leonard!" Dylan called out to him. Dylan tried to run towards his downed companion but was forcefully knocked away when Daniella's horse delivered a powerful kick with its hind legs. He was sent flying backwards and hitting one of the shields only to bounce off of it and land hard onto the ground. Dylan was now out cold from the attack.

With both contestants laid down on the floor, Daniella moved in-between the two with a wide grin on her face. "Now who to finish off first?" She chuckled to herself as she glanced between the two. "Maybe you first for being such an unruly cur." She moved her horse towards Leonard and was now towering over him.

"Crush him! Crush him!" The crowd of enemy soldiers watching the battle chanted out.

"Heh, not the best way to end this little spectacle but all the more entertaining." Daniella gave Leonard a wide grin. "Any last words?"

"Ugh, fuck you..." Leonard spat back at her from underneath. Daniella just gave an amused chuckle.

"Poor choice in words." She soon made her horse stand on its hind legs with its front legs raised up high. "Say good night." Her horse started to slam down on him.

As Leonard braced himself for the on-coming attack, a bright flash of dark lightning came crashing down just beside them interrupting the horse from slamming down on to him.

"Phew...that was close." Gelsey's voice was heard as she was shown standing outside the ring of knights. She had her staff raised in-front of her with the ball tip pulsing with dark sparks of electricity. Everyone, excluding Dylan, looked towards her direction with surprised looks on their faces. "Now, stop beating up my friends!"

"Why you insolent...men, get her!" Daniella commanded for her soldiers to attack. All the soldiers standing outside the ring of knights did as they were told and started charging at her with their weapons raised.

"S-stay back!" Gelsey warned them as she took a couple steps back. She soon started charging up a sphere forming around the tip of her staff. As all the enemy soldiers got close, she threw her sphere of dark magic at them causing a couple of men to get blown away. The rest that weren't affected by the blast just kept charging towards her. Gelsey tried to channel up another attack but was suddenly knocked away by a shield bash.

"Ugh..." Gelsey let out as she landed hard onto the ground. A soldier was soon able to drive a spear through her stomach. Her body disappeared moments later.

"Hmph, how pitiful." Daniella scoffed at Gelsey's defeat. "Now, where was I?" She said rhetorically but was suddenly got thrown off of her horse when Leonard tackled her with blinding speed.

"That's what you get for turning your back on me after threatening me." Leonard said as he held on to his naginata tightly. "Now get up and fight!"

"You're just lucky that your friend came in before I was able to finish you off." Daniella replied to him as she got up on her feet. She picked up her Halberd and shield afterwards. "I'm sorry my old friend, but I have to do this on my own." She said to her horse who was still shocked from the impact. "Now, have at you!" She charged forward with her shield blocking the cameras view.

* * *

As the shield moved away from the camera, the scene now transitioned to the Blue Nagas fight with Silvia in their base. Silvia was shown running around the open battlefield, popping to and from the thick amounts of fog that settled in a while ago, striking them every time.

"Eeek." Phoebe shrieked as Savior got struck by Silvia's attack creating a clanging sound before disappearing into the fog once more. "W-where did she g-go?"

"Look out!" Ginger called out as she blocked the jester's attack aimed right behind Nathan. The Silver blade of Silvia's scythe was locked in-between the two blades of Ginger's guns. "Hah!" She pushed away the scythe and Silvia disappeared once more.

"Thanks." Nathan thanked her.

"Don't thank me just yet. We're still yet done here." Ginger said in replay as she continued to remain vigilant.

"R-right." Nathan nodded as he held on to his rapier, Luciel, tight.

"AAAAH!" A loud screaming was heard through the thick fog. An ominous sounding chuckle soon followed

"Paris!?" Ginger called out as she recognized who it was. "Nathan, we got to find her!" She urged him to move. The latter nodded in response before the two of them ran towards where the scream came from.

As they ran through the thick fog in search for Paris, they soon saw what had happened when they finally found her. They both let out soft gasps when they saw Paris with a bloody blade sticking out through her chest. Her body soon flickered out of the virtual world to reveal Silvia standing behind her

"One down hahahaha." She said in a ghostly tone as she stared straight right at them.

"Grrr. I'll kill you!" Ginger roared at her as she charged at her. She slashed the blades of her guns forwards but the jester suddenly disappeared before she could even land a hit. Ominous sounding laughter started to echo throughout the area. "Enough with the cheap tricks! Come on out and take us on for real!" She yelled out angrily.

"Hmm? If I do that then it'll ruin all the fun." Silvia answered back followed with soft chuckling but hasn't shown herself yet. "I rather keep playing like this. Seeing all your tormented faces is what keeps me entertained."

"Screw you!" Ginger yelled back as she aimed her gun in a random direction. She took a shot with the bullet shot being visible through the fog but hit nothing in the end. More eerie laughter started to play out. "Dammit, this is getting us nowhere!"

"I know but we he have to keep our cool. She wants us to lash out like that so that she can pick us off easily." Nathan said to her in a calm manner to calm her down. "The way I see things is that she's just toying with us right now."

Ginger let out a deep sigh. "I know but- wait! What was that?" She cut herself off when she heard something odd. Listening carefully, a light crackling sound was heard.

"Clint!" Phoebe's voice was heard loudly through the fog. The two rushing back to where they left Clint and Phoebe, they soon saw what had just occurred. Ahead of them was Clint who was standing on his knees with his left over his right shoulder. His arm was noticeably bleeding for blood was trickling down from it. Phoebe was kneeling down beside him while their summons were standing in-between them and Silvia but the female doll, Violin, was standing behind the two. The blade of her scythe was faintly glowing with sparks of energy were crackling from it

"Hmm, you're tougher then you look." Silvia commented at she stared straight at Clint. Clint just glared back at her. "I expected your arm to be sliced clean off." She chuckled a bit. "Oh well, a second hit shall do the trick." The blade of her scythe started to absorb energy from all around it.

As she was busy preparing her attack, the male doll suddenly went into action and started to charge at her with the spear pointing forwards. Seeing the attack heading her way, Silvia simply stepped to the right to avoid the attack. She quickly swung her scythe down to break off the dolls entire left arm. With her still pre-occupied, Silver tried to pounce on her but she suddenly vanished causing him to miss.

"Hehehe. Useless." Her voice rang out for everyone to hear. Silvia suddenly appeared floating right above Clint and Phoebe. "Good night." She said to them while bearing a huge grin. She swung her scythe downwards with the blade glowing in a silver color. A silver colored wave of light started heading towards them.

As the attack collided with them, the two were soon enveloped in a bright flash of light followed by a small explosion to occur. "Nooo!" Ginger cried out as she shielded herself from the bright blast. As the force of the blast ended, another bright flash happened and soon another wave of light was sent flying towards Silvia and knocking her out of the air.

"Aaaah!" She yelled as she got hit by the attack and landing hard on the ground below. As the light faded out, Nathan was soon shown standing in the way of the attack with his rapier held out. His bodly looked badly beaten with some smoke flowing from him. The rapier he held was glowing brightly in a blue-ish white light.

"Nathan!?" Ginger said in surprise.

"Finish...this..." Nathan said weakly before collapsing. His body started to fade away before it hit the ground.

"Hmm...you'll pay for that!" Silvia said in angrier tone as she got up. "Aaaah!" Her body started pulsating with electricity.

"Ginger! F-finish it!" Phoebe called out to her. Standing beside her was the female doll playing its violin while sparks of electricity started flashing from it.

Ginger nodding in response went into action and started running towards the paralyzed jester with the blades of her guns sticking out. She soon ran passed her with a cross slash and with a quick turn of her heel she pointed the barrel of her gun towards Silvia's back and took a shot.

"Ugh..." Silvia groaned out in pain as she fell on her front. Moments later, Savior came in rushing towards the downed Jester to deliver the final blow as it drove it's spear onto her back. "Aaaaah!" She let out with her final breath before dying on the spot. Her body started to fade away like dust followed by the fog leaving only the scythe behind.

With the fog now gone, the scenery went back to normal with no more enemies in sight. Silence fell onto the area for no one made a sound as they thought heavily as to what happened. Moments later, Chris soon slowly materialized on scene with a wide grin on his face.

"Congratulations Blue Nagas! You are currently the first place runner ups for this challenge!" The host announced to them. "Since you guys won this challenge by defeating the raid boss, you guys get to keep her special weapon!" Chris reached his hand out to the side and soon the scythe that was left on the ground slowly flew to his hand.

"Hmm, not really suitable for a price. Let me fix this real quick." With a flick of his fingers, his panel appeared right beside him. Pressing a few buttons the scythe started to glow brightly. As the light died down, the scythe has completely changed it's form into something more radiant than it was before. "That's better." Chris commented with a smile.

The scythe now had a solid white metallic pole that curved outwards with the bottom-end ending with a blade point. The blade now spiked out from its opposite end with it now being in a dark black color but sharp edge of it leading to the tip was glowing in a blue color.

"Anyways, this here is Selena, the Moon reaver." Chris introduced the weapon to them once more. "This weapon here is enchanted with immense amounts of cosmic magic that it allows the wielder to do almost anything." He explained to them. "Well maybe except the whole fog thing. That was special for the boss only." He quickly added. "So, who wants it?"

The three of them just looked at the host in silence waiting to see if someone will speak up.

"Well?"

After a moment of silence between the remaining members, Ginger soon spoke up.

"Well, that scythe looks mighty fine but." She took a short pause. "But if I get that then these two bad boys won't get much use." She twirled both her guns to show them off. Ginger immediately holstered them soon after. "It may be tempting but I'd rather have something more low tier. Something good enough to keep but not to good to overshadow my true weapons."

"Interesting." The host smiled at her. "What about you Clint? You look like the type of guy that would go 'questing' for rare loot." He quickly eyed the aforementioned with a grin.

Clint just returned to him with a straight, uninterested look as he stared straight back at him. He soon got up with the aid of Phoebe's help before speaking up. "Being proficient at ones craft yields better results." He said to him in an even tone. "A sudden change will only leave one nowhere."

"Wow...I have no idea what you just said." Chris said blatantly. "If you don't want it just say so!" He spat at him. Clint didn't give no other response. "Well, that only leaves you Phoebe." He pointed his eyes towards her direction.

"M-me? B-but I cant even f-fight on my own." Phoebe said weakly as she was under Clint's arm.

"You don't have to use it. You can just make your summon use it for you." Clint said to her.

"W-wait, I can?" Phoebe said back with her head tilted a bit. Clint just rolled his eyes in response but nodded soon after. "I-I see..."

"Well? I'm waiting." The host said impatiently. After a few seconds of thinking it through, Phoebe soon came to a conclusion.

"O-okay, I'll k-keep it." She answered him.

"Good. Since if you didn't this weapon would be deleted entirely." Chris said to them as he tossed the scythe towards Phoebe and Clint. Savior managed to catch it with it's good arm before it could land right in-front of them. A dark blue aura emanated from the scythe showing that it was now linked with it.

"Wait, what do you mean delete it? We still have other two members that we could give it to!" Ginger questioned Chris about him.

"Are the two here right now?" Chris said back to her.

"No." She immediately answered.

"Well that answers your question. If they aren't here then they won't have the benefit of being able to decide; dead or not." Chris said to her. "Now..." He trailed off as he pressed some buttons on his panel. A green portal suddenly appeared right beside him. "Since you all finished first, you all get the benefit of watching the other two teams finish their challenge. This portal here will take you to outside the maze area where to large holographic monitors await for you." He explained to them. "I'll be seeing you all their." He soon vanished.

The three of them, now left alone, just stared back at each other and into the portal before Ginger spoke. "Well, lets get out of here then." She says to them before entering the portal first. The other two soon followed after.

(Confessional)

Ginger: Phew, I really can't believe we won that! I mean I never doubted that we could but seeing that we were first to do so was really something. If you're watching this right now Naoto, this just proves you can't count me out so easily!

Phoebe: Um, i-it really f-feels nice that w-we won this challenge. This just m-means we hopefully w-wouldn't have to f-face elimination for t-tonight.

(End Confessional)

* * *

The scene shifted to the room outside of the castle throne room. Here, Lunaris and her men were shown standing outside the throne room's massive double doors with the former standing by the foot of it. The young princess just breathed in and out calmly as a small smirk was shown on her lips.

"Interesting place to run and hide to." She said to no one in particular. "Oh well, If I have to get my new throne bloody then so be it." She said to herself. "Men! Open up the door for me."

Two armored soldiers soon walked up taking there positions in-front of the door while facing each other. They both pushed the doors open at the same time allowing for Lunaris to step inside followed by her men. All of the soldiers started rushing to the sides of the throne room leaving only the carpeted walk way open. As Lunaris gracefully walked down the carpet leading to the throne, a voice soon spoke up to greet her.

"Glad of you to make it!" Kazuo's voice was heard greeting her. The camera panning forwards revealed Kazuo sitting on the throne with Laren peaking her head from behind it. "I'm guessing you're here to kill us aren't you?"

"I'd be lying if I said it wasn't." Lunaris said with a smile. "Since you already know why I'm here..." She trailed off as she unsheathed her rapier. "Lets dance, shall we?"

"Lets." Kazuo replied with a smile of his own as he got up and pulled out his sword; Aurum.

"K-Kazuo be careful! She took out Alice and the others easily." Laren warned him as he slowly descended the steps.

"Don't worry about." He said to Laren without even looking back at her. Kazuo was now standing right across from Lunaris who still had a cheery look on her with her sword pointed at him. "Please, let me take the lead." He soon swung at her first. The two blades soon met up with each other making a clanging sound as they did.

As the two blades met, the scene suddenly jumped to Leonard and Daniella pushing the other back as their blades were locked against each other. Leonard suddenly shifted his momentum to strike her with the lower blade of his naginata but was easily blocked by Daniella's shield.

"Hmph, for someone who isn't a knight, you're not half-bad yourself." She commented on Leonard's strength. She soon bashed Leonard with her shield to knock him back and swing at him with her halberd but her swing was immediately stopped by Leonard's weapon.

"If only I could say the same thing for you." He sneered at her. "For a General of an army, I expected more from you." Leonard shoulder bashed her shield to make her move back away from him. He soon took his opening to jab at her but it was still blocked by the shield.

"Oh you'll be eating those words soon boy." Daniella answered back as she shoved the naginata away from her. She soon delivered a strong kick to his stomach sending hi flying back and blocking the camera's view with his back.

The scene now transitioned back to the throne room where Kazuo was shown getting thrown towards the steps and hitting them hard. A white mist was flowing out from his chest with some parts of his robes looked a bit burnt.

"Ugh.." Kazuo groaned in pain but ended up chuckling after. "Didn't expect to get sent back that hard." He said with a pained look as he slowly got up. "I thought all princesses were supposed to be gentle damsels?"

Lunaris just lightly chuckled at him as she approached. "Looks can be deceiving." She said simply as she jabbed him the gut with the butt-end of her sword's handle. Kazuo soon buckled over and fell down to his knees.

"Hah..." He groaned out as he coughed up some blood. "Yup...expected that to happen...*coughs*"

Lunaris soon delivered a strong back-handed slap to his face causing him to twist his body and fall over on his front. She immediately followed it up with a kick to his gut but the moment the kick landed the scene jumped to Leonard being kicked away and skidding on the ground before stopping after hitting a shield.

"Hmph, I guess this filthy cur is all bark and no bite." Daniella said to him in a spiteful tone.

"Urrr...screw you!" Leonard spat back at her as he struggled to get up. Daniella swung at him again with another strong kick to his gut to bring him down once more. She soon stomped down on him causing him to squeal for bit.

"Time to end this." Daniella says as she raises her weapon above her head. With a quick swing of her halberd, bits of blood splattered everywhere with Leonard flicking out soon after. "Now, lets see what we can do to you." She says as she looked towards the unconscious Dylan.

The scene soon soon jumped cut to the castle throne room just to show Kazuo laying still on the ground with Lnaris' rapier jabbed through his chest. His body flickered away seconds later leaving only the sword behind with some of blood dripping from it's tip.

"No! Kazuo!" Laren cried out as she was shown being held up by two armored soldiers by her arms.

"Hmm, such a shame. He didn't last very long." Lunaris said to no one as she shook her head. She soon looked towards Laren who had a terrified look on her face. "Oh well, time to finish the last of your pitiful team." She slowly started walking towards Laren who was trying to squirm her way out.

As the sound of her metalic boots echo throughout the throne room's interior, the scene was constantly jumping back and forth to Daniella and Lunaris walking towards their respective targets. Both of them holding on to their weapons tight to deliver the finishing blows to the contestants.

Both of them now standing right in-front of their respective contestants, they both held out their weapons to finally fiinish them off.

"Insolent fool." Daniella said spitefully to the unconcious Dylan as she raised her halberd high above her head.

"It was a pleasure meeting you all." Lunaris said simply to Laren as the blade of her rapier was pressed on to her neck.

Both bosses delievered their final blows and scene soon faded to white.

The scene now faded back to the real world and back inside the challenge building where all the contestant's pods popped open at the same time. White mist started to burst out of each pod as the contestants held inside them slowly got out. As the mist clears out, everyone was now out of their pods with both hosts waiting for them patiently on the control panel.

"So, what do you guys think about today's challenge?" Chris said to them with a grin as he was still seated on his chair. Skell was just standing right beside him with his arms crossed who also had an amused look on him.

"I'm sure they liked it." Skell answered for them as he chuckled slightly. Everyone in the room didn't bother to speak up and say other wise. "See."

"Just get on with the results already!" Leonard said looking a bit impatient as he glared at the two hosts.

"Sheesh. If you wanted to know if your team lost that badly then you should've just asked." Chris laughed a bit sadisticly as he said this. Almost everyone from the yellow chocobos and some other contestants didn't recieve his joke to well. "Fine, here are the results." He rolled his eyes as he pressed a button on the control panel. The large monitor in the room soon came to life as it displayed two empty boxes on screen.

"For first place we have..." Chris trailed off as the first box started to flicker a bit. Moments later, the Blue Nagas symbol was shown. "The Blue Nagas!" Everyone from the Blue Nagas cheerec except for Clint had a straight look on his face.

"Woohoo! We did it guys!" Paris cheered for her team.

"Y-yeah." Phoebe chimed in as she had a small smile on her.

"Hmph, if you all think you can count as out that easily then y'all are mistaken." Ginger said triumphantly to the rest of the contestants.

Nathan and Clint just kept quiet but traces of contentment was shown on their faces.

"Now, onto the second placers. The team that is shown on screen will be safe while the one who isn't will be seen tonight." Chris said to them with a malicious grin. Tension started to creep up on the other two teams as they wait for the results to pop up.

"The ones who are safe for tonight is." Chris took a dramatic pause. "Yellow Chocobos!" He finally announced. The Yellow Chocobos started to celebrate but the Red Dragons was hard pressed with the loss

"Yes! We did it!" Blake was heard cheering from his team. As he did, Lucette suddenly jumped on to him and hugged his right arm.

"Yeah, you were great out their." She said sweetly to him. Blake felt a bit uneasy with the situation he was in but Ginger managed to save him by pulling Lucette away off-screen.

"Hmph, its obviously because of my ingenious strat." Dylan boasted to get some recognition but no one even looked his way.

"You know, It was a close call actually." Skell suddenly said to them. "Both teams were down to their last member and both of them were pinned down with no hope of escape. It was so close in fact that we both had to look at our scanners to see who died first." He explained to them. Skell soon started prompting in commands on the control panel to reveal some sort of sensor similar to a heart detector on the monitor.

"This is what we looked at to see who died first. We call this the life sensor or something along those lines." He said to them. "To keep the technical stuff to a minimum, we use this to see if the player is still alive or not before the system pulls them out." Skell explained.

"To keep things from dragging on for any longer, Laren's sensor flat lined a second before Dylan's did." Chris suddenly interrupted. "With that out of the way..." The host trailed off as he looked towards the Red Dragons. "Red Dragons, I'll be seeing you tonight."

"*sigh* Things would have been better if we worked as a team!" Janet said to her team but directed it to Kazuo. The aforementioned just chuckled slightly at her.

"Actually, if we did, we would have been wiped out much faster." Kazuo replied to her with a knowing grin. "Me being away from you guys extended our time to making it close." He added.

"I'm sorry guys, I didn't know where else to run to." Laren said with a sad look on her face.

"It's not your fault." Alice said to her reassuringly. Alice still looked hard pressed on the lost. "Lets just head on back to the cabin." She said before leaving. Everyone else soon started to follow her out dispersing as they did.

* * *

(Cabin 5: Alice and Laren's. One hour left.)

The scene jumped cut later in the evening inside Laren and Alice's cabin. Inside, the latter was shown laying on the bottom bunk of their bed with her hands under her head staring at the bottom of the top bunk while the former just sat by the edge. Both of them looked a bit down for the upcoming event.

"So..." Laren started. "Who are you going to vote out for tonight?" She asked.

"Isn't it obvious? Kazuo obviously!" Alice answered back with a serious look. Laren couldn't say anything else. "If you're going to ask for my opinion, vote for Kazuo as well."

"But why though?"

"Why? You should already know by now as to why!" Alice raised her voice at her. "After what happened yesterday, that should have been a tell tale sign as to why!" She added with a harsh tone. Laren doesn't know what to say back and started to tear up a bit. Some slight sniveling can be heard from her.

"Laren I..." Alice tried to reach out to her but Laren just brushed her off and ran out of the cabin. "*sighs* Fine, be that way." She fell deeper into her pillow.

* * *

(Elimination grounds. Twenty minutes left.)

The scene now jumped ahead a couple minutes later to outside the elimination grounds. The fire in the center was already burning bright with some embers popping from the top. Sitting in one of the stumps ahead of time was Tristan who just stared at the fire.

"Hey, you're here early." A female voice called out to him. Tristan looking to who it was saw Janet standing beside him. "Mind if I join you?"

"I don't mind." Tristan said simply. With a smile, Janet sat on the stump next to his. The two sat there in silence for a brief moment before Janet suddenly spoke up.

"Why are you out here?"

"Just thinking about who to vote off." He answered.

"May I ask who you have planned?" Janet asked as well.

Tristan just shook his head at her. "No, I want to keep my vote for myself for the time being." He said to her. "And besides, I know what you are trying to do. You came to me since I'm all alone to try and persuade me to vote with you." He added with a grin.

Janet started to chuckle a bit. "Good to know you're not that naive of a person." She said back to him.

"Attention everyone! Eliminations is about to begin in a few minutes! Red Dragons, be out here before then to submit your votes." Chris's voice echoed out through the P.A. system.

"Well, time to vote." Tristan said before he got up.

The scene now jumped a couple minutes once again, the ceremony grounds where now seated with the remaining contestants with the two hosts standing in the middle. Skell this time around was the one holding on to a plate of cookies in the shape of dragons.

"Okay, time to read tonights votes." Chris said to them as he pulled out a list of names. "First one that is safe is Laren." He started.

Skell tossed Laren the cookie but was to depressed to bother even catching.

"Tristan."

He was able to catch the cookie but the tail piece broke off.

"Janet."

She wasn't able to catch hers for it bounced off of her hand.

"Alice."

She didn't catch hers for she didn't even care.

"Kazuo. Derek. You two are the final two and one that is safe for tonight is...

"...no one. Its a tie!" Everyone's eyes widened at the result.

"Wow, I just started my first day and its a tie. Isn't this interesting!" Skell grinned widely. "How are we going to solve this predicament though?" He faced the other host.

"Since this is the first tie for the season, lets do things lackluster for more drama." The main host grinned. "Or should I say, Luck-luster." He started laughing for a bit. Everyone just cringed at his bad joke. "Anyways, I expected a tie to happen sooner or later so I had these made." Chris pulled out three different cards in his hands. He showed everyone that each card had a team symbol on each.

"How this will work is that the two of you will choose from these three cards. The one who picks the one with their team symbol is safe." Chris explained to them. "But don't look at them when you get one."

"But there are three cards? What would happen if both of them chose the wrong cards?" Alice questioned.

"Easy. Both will be eliminated." Chris said plainly. The place soon fell quiet. "Now, who wants to go first?" He said after he was done shuffling the three cards.

"I'll go!" Kazuo said happily as he picked up a card. Derek soon went forward to grab his. The two now held a card each with the blank side facing upwards.

"Before the two of you reveal yours, lets reveal what card is left." Chris said with devious grin. He soon flipped the card to reveal the Chocobo symbol. "It seems only one is going home." He chuckled a bit. "Now, Kazuo. Derek. Reveal everyone your cards."

Both boys flipped their cards up to reveal which one is safe for tonight. The one holding the Red Dragon symbol was...

...Kazuo.

"And there we have it folks! Lady luck smiles upon Kazuo!" Chris exclaimed. "Derek. I'll be seeing you later." He pointed towards Derek. "Any last words before we end things off?" Derek didn't say anything. "Nothing huh? Oh well, no one is going to miss you anyway." He chuckled to himself.

"Okay, the ceremonies over! You may all leave now." Skell announced to them. "Derek, follow me." He said to Derek before both of them walked back to the challenge building. Everyone else left the area only leaving Chris alone.

The famed host all alone now, the camera zoomed in on him as he smiled his trademark smile. "There you have it our dear viewers, our once previous champions fell out of glory and became this times losers." He said smirking. "Will the Red Dragons jump back and win just like the Blue Nagas did? Will the Blue Nagas secure another win that the Red Dragons couldn't? Will the Yellow Chocobos be the winners next time to make things even with one win each? And will anything happen to Lucette and Blake? Find out next time on Total...Drama...Dungeon Hunters!" Chris held out his arms dramatically.

* * *

Votes:

Alice: Kazuo. There's nothing much I need to say about this

Laren: *sniff* I want to say Kazuo but, after what happened with Alice, I don't think I would want to vote with her. So I'm voting for Derek instead.

Tristan: My vote goes to Derek. Between the two of them Kazuo looks to be the best one to keep in all honesty.

Janet: Kazuo. I don't care if he has the best equipment out of all of us. If he doesn't want to act with us then he there is no point in keeping him.

Kazuo: Hmm, who to vote? Maybe that Derek guy. Yeah, lets be cliché for the first elimination for our team.

Derek: Hmph. Kazuo.

* * *

Places:

18th: Estwynn Paratus. The Mech and Hero Enthusiast. Role: Fighter

17th: Derek Wright. The Dangerous Outcast. Role: Fighter

* * *

 **Authors note: Derek. There is nothing much I could say about him in all honesty. He is the type of guy that would do things on his own but would do things for his own benefit due to his strength. In normal circumstances if we forget about the virtual world for a bit his type would easily make it farther than his current placement but since everyone is in a position where even the physically weakest contestant can carry he really won't shine much.**

 **It's really sad for me to drop him since I really like his type since I find them interesting. But as a writer I have to let go of personal bias to make things fair for everyone since none of the characters are mine. All in all, he was fun for me to write for but I couldn't keep for long due circumstances. He had a decent run but who knows he might come back as a returnee for merge.**

 **Anyways, I hope you guys also like the new host added. He was sent it by Obikinoah, another writer here. He's a good writer and stuff. If you guys think I added it for some random reason then you are all mistaken. Read the chapter where I posted the cast list a long time ago. It will serve as an explanation for him being added just now.**

 **Now, onto the chapter question: How would your OC react and feel if they aren't allowed to use their main weaponry for the next challenge and was forced to work with the other teams? As always, send you answers through PMs and I'll be seeing y'all next time. Bye and Happy Holidays!**


	8. Dragon Rulers

"Last time on Total Drama: Dungeon Hunters." Chris started off the episode with his trademark smile. "Our dear contestants took on the hair raising 'silent' night challenge where their goal was to survive as long as possible against the deadly Celestial army." The three raid bosses: Lunaris, Daniella, and Silvia, were shown on screen. "After enduring long hard fought battles by our three teams, the winners were soon determined when the Blue Nagas, despite all odds, managed to snag the first place spot when they defeated the raid boss Silvia." A replay was soon shown of Ginger and Phoebe defeating the boss.

"With their victory in hand it was only a matter of time before another team would soon fall to eliminations." The host gave of a malicious grin. "Though the last two teams fought with all they had to give, the final loser was soon determined when Laren of the Red Dragons finally fell to the hands of the raid boss Lunaris." A still image of Lunaris with the blade of her rapier pressed onto Laren's neck was shown. "And with their loss came with the price of Derek being eliminated the following night." The replay of Derek's final moments during the elimination ceremony was shown. The camera started to zoom in on Chris as it ended.

"Who will be crowned this weeks winners once more? Will the Blue Nagas be able to secure another team victory? Will the Red Dragons come out on top from the ashes of defeat? Will the Yellow Chocobos be the ones with their tails between their legs? And will Laren and Alice fix up their relationship? Find out now on Total...Drama...Dungeon Hunters!" Chris exclaimed as he held both arms open dramatically.

~(Theme Song)~

(Cabin 7: Dylan and Clint's)

Inside the rustic wooden cabin sleeping comfortably on their beds were the two rivals Clint and Dylan. The former was shown sleeping on his side on the bottom bunk off the bed while the latter was asleep on his chest with one arm swinging down from the side. As the two sleep soundly, a loud crashing was outside their cabin forcing Clint to wake up.

Groggily waking up from his sleep, he pulled the covers on top of him and swung his legs to the side of the bed in order to sit up straight. Letting out a soft yawn, he soon got up and started walking towards the table where his glasses were placed. Clint was shown just wearing a white long sleeved shirt on coupled with long black shorts.

After putting on his glasses he looked to see if his roommate had woken up as well but as he turned to look Dylan was still fast asleep. Looking away from him now, Clint headed towards the door to check on what had happened. As he opened the door to see what had caused the sound, he soon saw Chef scolding Phoebe with his arms crossed and scattered pieces of wood on the ground.

"Next time watch where you are going maggot!" Chef scolded the small girl with a scowl on his face. Phoebe had a terrified look on her face all the while looking down.

"I-I'm sorry." Phoebe said in a quiet tone.

"What did you say?" He said back to her in an angry tone. Phoebe just kept quiet and didn't say anything else. "*sigh* Whatever. Pick up the pieces of wood and set them up by the fire pit, understand?" He instructed her to do. The scowl on his face was still there. Phoebe didn't say a word but nodded. "Good. Now get to it." He said before leaving Phoebe alone.

As soon as Chef left the scene, the doll faced girl immediately got to work and picked up the pieces of wood. After a moment of watching her pick up a few pieces, Clint walked in to help her gather them all up. Phoebe taking notice of him soon spoke up.

"Um, m-morning Clint. Uhh, I-I can d-do this on my own." She said meekly to Clint. The latter just took a quick glance back at her before continuing to pick up more wood. "Umm, okay..."

After a minute or so off silently picking up the pieces of wood, they were now done and are now heading to the camp site. Phoebe held in her arms a couple of thin sticks with a thick branch or two while the rest of the larger branches were being carried by Clint.

"Um, y-you didn't have to help..." Phoebe said shyly, blushing a bit, while they were walking. Clint didn't say anything and just kept on walking ahead of her. "Hmm..." She kept her head low as they continued to walk.

Moments later the two were now at the camp site where the eliminations took place last night. The fire pit in the middle was completely empty except for a couple ashes left at the centre of it. Placing the fire wood down next to the pit, Clint begun setting it up.

"Oh umm I-I can take th-things from here." Phoebe insisted as she picked up a long branch. She had a hard time trying to balance herself causing her to stumble a bit and eventually dropping the branch. The branch fell on what Clint had already started causing it to topple over.

"I-I'm sorry!" Phoebe quickly apologized with her head low and her hands clasped together between her thighs. Clint, looking up to meet Phoebe's eyes, just brushed off the incident and begun to set things up again.

A few minutes later, Clint was now finished setting up the fire wood on the fire pit. The larger branches forming a cone shape while the smaller ones crossed underneath it. As soon as he finished he wiped away some sweat from his forehead before standing up and patting away the dust on his knees. He looked towards Phoebe who just stood there looking down on her feet with a sad look on her face.

"I'm sorry." She said once more but was too embarrassed to look up at Clint. The taller boy just rubbed the top of Phoebe's head messing with her blond hair for a bit. Moments later, Clint left the scene leaving Phoebe alone. Phoebe just watched him walk off looking a bit flushed.

(Confessional)

Phoebe: Umm I-I uhh don't know w-what to say really. He was umm chivalrous I g-guess?

Leonard: What the fuck you want me for? *Shows replay of Phoebe and Clint* You guys woke me up just for that!? What are you guys fucking twelve? I'm outta here.

Paris: Oooo. I saw what happened between Phoebe and Clint. They look so cute together! I wonder how Jag would feel about this? *giggles*

(End Confessional)

* * *

(Girls bathroom)

The scene now transitioned to inside the girls bathroom. The bathroom floor was fully tiled while the walls were painted pink. A long, wide mirror is placed near the entrance with a large sink underneath it. Further inside the bathroom were a couple closed stalls along each side of walls. The sound of water rushing filled the bathroom as well as some steam escaping from some of the stalls.

"Hey Janet, can I borrow your soap? The one here seems to be missing." A voice asked from one of the stalls.

"Hmm okay." Janet answered back from the next stall. Her hand soon popped up with a bar of soap in hand and placed it on top of the short wall separating the two. Another hand came out the other side and grabbed the soap.

"Thanks!"

"No problem Gelsey."

As the two continue to take their showers, silence fell between the two for only the water running was the only thing being heard. After a couple moments of dead silence Gelsey started to speak up to to start up a conversation.

"So Janet, how do you feel about this season of total drama?" She asked to start things off.

"Hmm? Why do you ask?" Janet asked back.

"Oh no reason really. Just curious is all." Gelsey answered.

"Well umm its fine I guess." Janet finally answered. "Though I did not expect things to feel so real." She added.

"What do you mean by 'real'?" Gelsey asked in a much more curious sounding tone.

"We are in a virtual world right? I just didn't expect the pain and exhaustion we felt there to transfer in the real world." Janet elaborated.

"Oh. That." Gelsey finally got it. "Yeah I can agree to that. I actually checked myself to see if any bruises got transferred as well." She giggled a bit. "Anyways, are there any other reason why you decided to join?"

"Well like I said to Chris when we first got here I just wanted to make memories." Janet answered. "And even if there is a deeper reason as to why I'm not open to telling."

"Aww, why not?"

Janet just lightly chuckled instead of answering. Seconds later the sound of water running from her stall ended. The door to her stall started open up allowing the steam inside to quickly pour out. As the steam started to fade Janet was shown with a long towel wrapped around her body with some water dripping at the bottom.

"Oh well, I'm done with my shower now. It was great talking to you Gelsey." She said as she started to walk off.

"Oh okay!"

(Confessional)

Gelsey: Janet, she looks like she would be a really good friend to have. Its sad to see that we're on different teams since I don't think she's getting along well with her team. If she was on my team then things might be different.

(End Confessional)

* * *

(Virtual world: Open plains)

The scene now jumped to inside the virtual world before the challenges would start. The area shown was just an open grassy field far beyond where the maze was. Laying down on the thick grass was Alice on her own with her arms under the back of her head. She looked to be depressed a bit as she laid there with heavy thoughts.

"*sigh* Why can't the setting be during the evening. I can barely think for myself out here! "Alice said to herself in an annoyed tone as she suddenly sat up. "What is this game doing to me?" She asked rhetorically as she looked up to gaze at the virtual sky.

"Well its making you crazy that's for sure." A male voice suddenly answered her.

"Huh? Who's there!" Alice suddenly sprung up and looked behind her with her dagger drawn. "Jag?" She said as she saw who it was. "What do you want?"

"Easy now, I'm not here to mess with you." Leonard crossed his arms. "I was just here to do some training when I heard someone yelling. I should be asking you that instead." He added with a serious look.

"Well its none of your business." Alice said looking annoyed as she returned her dagger. "Now get lost. I want to be alone for a while."

"Hmph, I can see why that Laren girl went off and left you last night." Leonard stated as he turned his back on her. He soon started to walk off away from her. Alice, hearing this, suddenly felt triggered as she started clenching her fist.

"Don't you dare mention her name to me." She said in a low angered tone. Leonard suddenly stopped in his tracks as he heard this.

"Why? Did I hit a nerve or something?" He said tauntingly as he gave Alice a side smirk. The latter just stood there in silence looking down on the ground with her bangs covering her eyes. Leonard scoffed as he faced back forwards. "I guess this dragon is all out of breath." He started to walk off.

As Alice stood there watching Leonard walk off, she suddenly started to slowly raise her bow with an arrow pointed right at him. Pulling back on its string she was about to let go and fire but a sudden chill crept up from the back of her neck causing her to miss her shot. The arrow whiffed passed her target and hit the tree far off to the right.

"What the?" Leonard suddenly stopped in his tracks as he looked towards where the arrow landed. He soon looked back to see Alice looking down with her bow in her arms. "Couldn't do it huh?" Alice didn't say anything. "If we were back in my place having second thoughts like that will only get you killed. You're lucky I'm not in the mood right now to deal with you." He continued on walking away from her.

Alice just kept a cold glare at him as he continued on until he was no longer in her line of sight. As Leonard left, she soon laid back down staring up at the virtual morning sky. She laid there in silence as a light breeze whistled through the open area.

(Confessional)

Alice: If only he knew my matron was already forcing me to stop. If she hadn't...*chuckles* Lets just say he wouldn't dare taunt me anytime soon.

(End Confessional)

Back in the real world the two hosts Skell and Chris were by the control panel inside the challenge building setting up for the days challenge. The latter was shown sitting comfortably on his chair with a cup of coffee in hand while the former was busy tapping away at the control panel. After a few moments of silence between the two with only the sound of keyboard tapping to be heard, a green light suddenly started flashing causing Skell to stop.

"Aaaaand done." He said with a final press of a button. The green light stopped flashing and the large monitor soon came to life. The picture on the monitor's screen reveals it to be a large gladiatorial arena.

"Took you long enough." Chris said casually as he took a sip of coffee. "Now go rally up the contestants. The challenge is about to begin." He took another sip of his coffee until his cup was now empty. With a flick of his fingers an intern soon came rushing towards him to take the now empty cup before running away off-screen.

"Why do I have to do all the hard work around here? Don't you have staff to do all these technical stuff?" The other host suddenly questioned him. Chris just gave his co-host a devious grin all the while silently chuckling to himself.

"Ever wondered why we have a large prize pool and yet still have enough to pay Chef a large sum of cash to cook extravagantly?" Chris asked him with a devious grin. Skell just gave a Sceptic look in return.

"What do you mean?"

"To answer that, the answer is simple." Chris paused for a moment to make things look dramatic. "We, or I more rather, didn't hire any. Since hiring you would already cover up all the technical stuff we went all out with miscellaneous stuff with the money we saved." He ended, grinning.

"So you mean to tell me not only am I the co-host I'm also the head and only programmer?" Skell said trying to sum it all up. "How is that fair?"

"Hey, don't complain like it wasn't a good idea. You even went all out on the sushi buffet last night." Chris pointed out with the same looking grin. "Now get back to work and call the contestants."

"*sigh* Fine, you got me there." Skell says with his arms crossed. He soon turned back around to press a button on the panel for a microphone to pop out. He cleared his throat before speaking into the mic. "Attention contestants. The challenge is now about to begin. Please be here within the hour so that we may finally start. For those who are in the virtual world you already know the drill by now. That is all."

"Good. Now freshen yourself up. I don't want a sweaty co-host to be with me on my stage." The host said as he turned his chair around to face the glass doors.

The scene now jumped cut a couple minutes later with the room filled with the remaining contestants. They were all shown standing by their respective teams with Chris and Skell standing back at the front. Everyone was waiting impatiently for the two hosts to finally explain to them the challenge.

"So, is everyone here?" Chris asked to everyone. Skell just gave him a thumbs up. "Good. Now, for today's challenge we will have you guys fight in this massive arena." The host motioned for his partner to activate the monitor. Skell obliged and soon got onto the seat and started pressing buttons. The large monitor now shows the large arena shown earlier in the midst of a large ancient roman-like city.

"Let me guess. We're going to fight to the death on one-on-one combat for today's challenge aren't we?" Dylan said from the front of his team. He had a noticeable grin on his face.

"O-one-on-one c-combat?" Said Phoebe snakingly.

"Don't worry Phoebe. I'm sure you'll do great." Ginger reassured the shaking girl.

"Its not that simple." Chris said, grinning. "For you see, the challenge does revolve around you guys fighting but not against each other." The host paused for a moment as he looked back to his partner. Skell soon understood what he needed to do and started inputting in commands. "You'll be fighting off against these ancient beings." The monitor now showed live previews of five reptilian-like creatures with different coloured scales all trapped in different cages.

"Wait, we're going to fight against that?" Blake said taken aback from what he saw. "Can we even stand a chance against dragons?"

"That's for you guys to find out." Chris started chuckling. "Anyways, there's also a little twist to this. No contestant is allowed to use their main weapon as well as weapon drops including boss items." He explained to them. "Not only that, you guys are also going to work together with the other teams that will be divided into five groups with three members each." He added.

"Are you being serious here? Some of us can't use our skills without our weapons. Me included!" Ginger complained. "Also, how will we know which team won in the end if we're going to work with the others?" She raised a brow at him with her arms crossed.

"Hmph, not to mention some of us have bad blood with the other teams." Alice added in as she glanced towards the yellow Chocobos.

"That's simple really. If a group won then the person who gets the killing blow earns bonus points for their team. To keep things simple participating earns you three points while getting the final blow earns the team five points." The host explained to them. "Also since the Yellow Chocobos has one extra member one of them has to sit this challenge out to keep things equal. So, who wants to sit this one out?"

"I do!" Lucette suddenly raised her hand. "I can't fend for myself well and I just know that I'm going to be useless without my staff so having me in will only serve as a burden for my team." She explained herself.

"Yeah, she's right. Let her sit this one out." Blake defended her as well. Lucette, surprised to see Blake defending her, couldn't help but smile towards him.

"I see. Any final thoughts on this before I make this the final call?" Chris asked the other Yellow Chocobos. No one from them disagreed. "Okay its settled then. Lucette will be sitting this one out."

"Yay! Thanks Blake!" Lucette smiled at him once more.

"Oh umm its nothing. Just wanted to make up with you from yesterday still." Blake said looking a bit flustered. Lucette couldn't help but giggle.

"Okay, what about our weapons then? Do you expect us to fight with our secondary's only?" Kali asked this time around.

"That's fine with me. I can just use my cannons to win this challenge." Tristan said looking confident with himself.

"Don't worry about that. You all will be provided with a selection of weapons to choose from once the challenge starts." Chris answered Janet. "Also, a weapon can only be selected once per round only." He added. "Anything else?" No one else spoke up. "Good. Now time to-"

"Wait! Don't forget to tell them about the special reward." Skell reminded from his seat.

"Oh right." Chris suddenly remembered. "This also going to be a reward challenge. The two teams that will be safe for tonight will receive one of the two gems as well as a weapon each." A different image soon shown on the monitor showcasing two different coloured gems; one gold and the other silver. "The two gems are called the awakened and named stones respectively."

"The awakened stone turns the weapon to be as strong as a boss weapon. Meaning the weapon will have no draw backs." Skell explained to them. "While the named stone turns the weapon to be as strong as the named weapon drops. Meaning the weapon will have some drawbacks."

"Now with that out of the way. Everyone, get in your pods now for we're about to begin the challenge!" Chris announced to them. "Skell will announce who will be teamed up with who once you're all in the virtual world."

Everyone started getting into the pods just as they were all told. As the last contestant got inside, the monitor activated moments later to reveal each contestant standing in the middle of the arena.

"Well, time for me to head on in." Skell said as he got up from his seat. He soon walked off-screen to get into his own personal pod. With Chris now alone once again, he flashed his trademark smile as the camera closes in on him.

Well, there you have it our dear viewers. With the challenge now introduced to our remaining contestants its time to see which team will be the one on top this time around." Chris took a dramatic pause. "Who will be the two lucky contestants to receive these great rewards? Who will be the unlucky contestant that would be sent home tonight? And will Alice get along with the Yellow Chocobos? Lets find out now shall we?" He ended with a smile as he pressed a button on his panel.

The scene now transitioned to inside the virtual world and inside the large arena where the challenge is being held. The sound of crowds cheering filled the area for the stands where filled to the brim with virtual romans. Standing by the judges corner was Skell accompanied by Lucette and two familiar faces.

"Welcome everyone to the first ever dragon slaying event!" Skell announced to everyone in the stands. The crowds started cheering even louder with the sounds of horns playing. "Joining me today in the wonderful morning is the lovely Lucette and our two ex-contestants Estwynn and Derek! Give them a round of applause!" The crowd started cheering as loud as ever.

"Thanks for that wonderful intro Skell." Lucette said as she waved at the virtual crowd.

"Thank you. Thank you. I'm glad to be here as well." Estwynn waved at the virtual crowd. Derek didn't do the same for he just sat on his chair in silence. All three of them were shown wearing their regular outfits. "So tell me Skell, why did you pull us out of our own challenge just to watch our previous teammates?"

"Oh that's because its a reward challenge. Since this is a special challenge we figured that letting you two have a break would be good idea as well." The co-host explained to him.

"Ah, I see. I hope my old team does great for this challenge." Estwynn said a bit solemnly.

"Glad to see you still want to cheer your team on even after they voted you off first." Skell said with a smile. "Anything else you want to add Derek before we got on with the event?" He looked back at the other ex-contestant. Derek just gave him a cold stare with his arms crossed. "I see, thanks for that wonderful input. Now, what are we waiting for? Let the first round...begin!" The crowd started cheering even more.

"For the first round we will be having Alice of the Red Dragons, Dylan of the Yellow Chocobos, and Nathan of the Blue Nagas!" Skell introduced the first set of contestants. The gates holding the contestants started to open up. The three mentioned soon started walking out of the gates as the crowd cheered them on.

"*sigh* Why do I have to be in the first round?" Alice asked looking a bit annoyed with her arms crossed.

"Normally I wouldn't mind being first but seeing that its with you makes things all the more complicated. Don't think for moment that I've forgotten about what you did in the first challenge." Dylan said staring angrily at Alice.

"Good. They do say those who forget about their past are doomed to repeat it." Alice said tauntingly.

"You better watch your back or otherwise the dragon would be the least of your worries." He said back to her. Alice just chuckled silently under her breath.

"Hey! You two are supposed to work together as a team. Not fighting against each other!" Skell called out to them.

"He's right you know. If you want to win this for your teams then you will have to work together as unit!" Estwynn added in.

"She can suck my unit!" Dylan said back at him. The crowd started to go 'oooooh' when they heard his come back.

"Oh please. Save yourself the embarrassment given the amount of compensation you've been doing." Alice snapped back at him. The crowd started to get even wilder after that one.

"Oof, that's gotta hurt." Skell commented. "You better whip up a potent heal spell for Dylan, Lucette. For I don't think he can recover after that one."

"Can we just get on with the challenge already!" Dylan demanded. Alice just stood there laughing at his displeasure.

"Okay fine, but first..." Skell trailed off as he pulled out his holographic panel. After pressing a few buttons a holographic monitor soon appeared in-front of the contestants. "The three of you will have to select your weapons from the four available. There are twelve different weapon types but only four is available for you guys to choose from. The weapons shown will be chosen at random to make things a lot more interesting." He explained to them. "Also, since the Blue Nagas placed first, Nathan gets to choose first followed by Dylan and Alice last."

"Hah!" Dylan cheered triumphantly over Alice. The latter just shook her head low.

"Now, the weapons available for you three are the following." Skell started pressing on his panel once more and the monitor now shows four different weapons. "The three of you will be choosing from the Heavy bow gun, the Gun lance, the Sword and Shield, and the Charge blade."

"Wait a minute. These weapons are from monster hunter. Sweet!" Dylan exclaimed in excitement. "I fully mastered every weapon in that game so this would be easy." He boasted a bit.

"You've got to be kidding me." Alice said clearly not liking the weapon selection.

"Anyways. Nathan. Choose your weapon." The co-host said to him.

Nathan didn't say anything as he walked up to inspect the weapons. He examined each one carefully before finally settling with the Charge blade. The Charge blade is a large katana with a trigger on its handle. After selecting the weapon it soon materialized right in-front of him. Grabbing his new sword, he walked back to stand next with the others.

"Now, its Dylan's turn to choose."

Dylan did the same as Nathan did and walked up towards the monitor. He didn't take long before settling with the Sword and Shield. Like the name suggests, the weapon he chose is just a normal looking sword and shield. The weapons soon materialized right in-front of him. With both items in hand now, Dylan walked back to his spot.

"And Finally, Alice its your turn."

With a displeased look, Alice quickly walked up to the monitor to make her selection. The weapon she chose from the remaining two was the Gun lance. The Gun lance looks like a standard lance double ended lance except there is a trigger on its handle as well as coming with a towering shield. Alice picking up her weapons after it materialized soon walked back with the others.

"Now that the three of you have your weapons its time to reveal who you are up against." Skell said as he pressed another button on the panel. The gate across from the contestants started to slowly open up. "For the first round. The three of you will be up against-" He was suddenly cut off when an ear piercing roar came out of gates.

The sound of loud thumping soon came afterwards as piercing yellow eyes appeared on the other side of the gates. Moments later a large wyvern soon came crawling out while keeping its eyes trained on the three contestants. The creature had light green jagged scales with sharp spines protruding from the back of it's neck all the way to the tip of it's tail. It let out another ear-piercing roar as it slowly circled around the contestants standing in the middle.

"You'll be up against Zeph, the Storm Wyvern!" The co-host announced. The crowd started cheering even louder as he did. "Now, let the battle...begin!"

At that moment the Wyvern lunged at the contestants with its mouth gaping wide open. The three contestants quickly scrambled out of the way to dodge the attack. Alice and Nathan moved to the Wyvern's right while Dylan jumped to it's left. The Wyvern quickly swung it's powerful tail towards the two while swiping away at Dylan with it's sharp claws.

"Watch out!" Nathan warned as he managed to jump over the Wyvern's tail. Alice tried to move out of the way but she got blown away by the massive tail causing her to hit the nearby wall hard before sliding back down. She managed the block the tail with her shield but it dented in the process.

"Hmph, so much for the shield." She said throwing the now bent shield aside. She slowly got up from ground with the lance to push her back up.

"Are you okay?" Nathan said as he ran up towards her.

"Yeah I'm good. Can't say much for the shield though." She answered him. "Not like I'll need it."

"Guys, a little help here!" Dylan pleaded as he was shown being cornered by the Wyvern. The Wyvern attempted to swipe it's massive claws at it's small target but Dylan managed to duck under the attack. "Hah!" Dylan roared as he immediately slashed away at the Wyvern's arm. The attack barely did anything for only a few scratches were seen on it's scales.

Letting out another roar the Wyvern slammed down Dylan with it's other arm pinning him on the ground in-between its claws. Dylan yelled out in pain as the Wyvern was slowly crushing him. With Dylan now trapped, the Wyvern was about to snap at him with its jaws but an explosion struck it at it's back causing it stop from its attack. Turning it's head around the Wyvern soon saw Alice pointing her lance towards it with some smoke puffing out from its tip.

"Its not up my alley but it'll have to do." Alice stated before pulling back on the hammer. The tip of her lance suddenly split open to reveal the gun barrel. Squeezing the trigger, another shot soon came flying towards the Wyvern hitting it directly on its head causing some smoke to spread.

"Nice shot." Nathan praised.

As the smoke clears up, the Wyvern looked to be a bit dazed with some burn marks covering it's snout. Shaking off the attack, the Wyvern let loose another mighty roar before switching it's attention from Dylan towards the other two. As it slowly crawled it's way towards them, staring at them menacingly with a low growl, Alice and Nathan were backing up a few steps at a time as it did. With the Wyvern now in the centre of the arena it stood on it's two hind legs and folded out its massive wings before suddenly taking flight.

"Whoo boy, there we have it folks! Our boy Zeph here is about to show us why he's called the Storm Wyvern!" Skell announced in excitement. The crowd started to cheer him on.

"Oh my." Said Lucette in shock. "I hope they can survive this."

"I suggest you hold down on to your skirt tight." Estwynn warned her. "For I have a slight inkling on what's going to happen next." He added.

With the Wyvern climbing up higher and higher, it's massive wings started to glow in a bright light-green hue. As it reached the apex of it's flight it stayed there for a moment over looking everything down below. With a sudden beat of it's wings, a howling gale ripped through the air creating a sonic boom aimed straight towards them.

"Brace yourselves!" Nathan yelled out as he dug the tip of his sword on to the ground and held on to it tight. Alice did the same to her lance. Dylan on the other hand just hunkered down low with his back against the wall and his shield covering most of his body.

As the strong air blast hit the ground below, the impact of it shook the entire arena causing a massive dust cloud to blow through the air. Loud screaming was heard around the entire area as everything in view was covered in dust. Moments later with the dust cloud slowly subsiding a massive crater was shown in the middle of the battle ground.

"*cough* *cough* Are the three of you okay?" Skell asked in a worried tone as he looked back to his three companions. With the dust in there booth slowly clearing up, the three were shown looking quite okay except for Lucette who was a bit shaken.

"Yeah, were good." Estwynn answered him. He suddenly let out a strong sneeze. "Ugh, just a bit dusty." He said as he wiped his nose. The other two composed themselves with Lucette giving a thumbs up. Derek just sat back up straight ignoring them.

A loud roar was soon heard blasting throughout the area. As everyone looked, the Wyvern was now shown quickly descending back into the arena. Landing in the centre of the crater it created it flapped it's giant wings to clear out the remaining clouds of dust. With scene now clearer the three contestants were shown to have been blown away and knocked over. Silence fell upon the area with only the low growl of the Wyvern only to be heard.

"A-are they dead?" Lucette asked to no one in particular as she was at the edge of her seat.

"Doubt it. If they were then they their bodies shouldn't be here." Skell responded but his eyes were still set upon the downed contestants.

As everyone watched on in silence in anticipation for what's going to happen next, some slight movement was shown from the contestants. Moments later all three of them started to slowly rise up looking quite beaten. The crowd cheered them on as they did.

"Heh...its not over until its over..." Dylan said with a weak smile as he picked up his sword and shield.

"Hmph, that's not enough...to kill me." Alice taunted as she slowly walked towards her lance to pick it back up. Nathan did the same as he pulled out his sword from the ground. All three of them started walking towards the outer rim of the crater.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, we still have a fight in our hands!" Skell exclaimed out loud. The crowd started to cheer even more.

Letting out another loud roar, the Wyvern attempted to take flight but got bombarded with shots from both Dylan and Alice.

"Where do you think you're going?" Alice said as she had her lance pointed towards the Wyvern. The Wyvern tried to charge at her but stopped when she pulled on the trigger send out another explosive shot. Dylan did the same as he threw another dark sphere.

As the two of them continue to bombard the Wyvern with their attacks, Nathan suddenly started rushing down the pit quick with his sword off to his side. As he got close to Wyvern he suddenly jumped up high almost as if he was soaring through the air. Squeezing on the trigger of his sword, the long blade started overflowing with energy for it was glowing bright. Using the momentum of his jump he sliced down on to the Wyvern's neck before landing safely on to the ground.

The two taking notice of what Nathan did, they stopped bombarding the Wyvern for they knew what was going to happen next. A few seconds later the Wyvern suddenly fell straight to the ground kicking up some dust as it landed. The moment it hit the ground the Wyvern's head rolled away from it's neck with lots of blood oozing out. The crowd started cheering the moment the battle ended.

"And there you have it folks. The first round has finally concluded with our contestants being the winners!" Skell announced. "And with that, the scores have been settled. Yellow and Red having three points each while Blue have the lead with five!"

"Yay! Good job Dylan!" Lucette cheered him on as she was jumping with joy.

"Glad to see my old team took the lead from the first round." Estwynn said smiling. Derek didn't do or say anything for he just sat quietly in his seat.

"Thank you. Thank you. All of you are too kind." Dylan said waving at the crowd as they cheered.

"You do know they're all A.I right?" Alice said to him with her arms crossed with a brow raised. Dylan just shot her a quick glance before proceeding back to waving at the crowd. "*sigh* Boys." She said shaking her head. She soon took notice of Nathan slowly climbing back up from the crater. "Hey, good job out there."

Nathan just nodded at her with a small smile in response.

As the crowd continue to cheer on the winners of the first round, the gates holding the contestants soon opened up once more. Skell clearing out his throat soon announced the next set of contestants that would be battling next.

"For the next round we have Kazuo of the Red Dragons, Clint of the Blue Nagas, and Gelsey of the Yellow Chocobos!" He introduced the next set of contestants. As he did, the three mentioned started to walk out of the gates. "Alice, Dylan, and Nathan. You three may leave now."

"Finally! I needed a long rest after this one." Dylan said as he started to walk back towards the gate. "Hey Clint. Good luck out there." He said patting Clint's shoulder as he walked passed him. "Oh, and you to Gels." He said looking back at his teammate before continuing to walk back in.

"Gee, thanks." Gelsey replied rolling her eyes.

"Hey Alice!" Kazuo said smiling at her as he approached. Alice just scoffed at him as she brushed him off. "Aww, not even a good luck or a thumbs up?" He said pouting. "Oh well, at least she noticed me." He chuckled a bit.

"Um, good luck Clint." Nathan said to him as he walked by him. With the three previous contestants now out of the field the doors started closing behind them.

"With them now gone, Its time for the three of you to choose your weapons!" Skell announced to them. The weapon selection screen appeared right in-front of them. Four new weapons all appeared on the selection screen. "The four weapons you three can choose from are the Bow, The Hammer, The Light Bowgun, and The Hunting Horn!" He said naming each weapon. "Clint. You may choose first."

Clint approached the weapon screen inspecting each weapon. His eyes were noticeably darting between two weapons until he finally made his choice. The weapon Clint chose was no other then the Bow. The bow he wielded was far different from the one he uses for it was far larger then his normal bow all the while coming with a quiver full of heavier arrows. Pulling out one of the arrows it was shown that the arrow head was far larger and was as long as the stick.

"Now its your turn Gelsey."

Gelsey walking nervously up to the screen she was looking back and forth between the available weapons. After a while of thinking it over she soon went with the Light Bowgun. The Light Bowgun she held on her hands is light and compact while having a noticeably long and thin barrel.

"And lastly, its your turn Kazuo."

Kazuo casually approached the weapon select screen. As he did he immediately chose the weapon he wanted from the remaining two. The weapon Kazuo went with without hesitation was the Hunting Horn. The Hunting Horn that Kazuo wields is like any other regular horn except it was as long as he is and the bell was a a skull of a horned beast. The weapon select screen soon disappeared.

"Um, why the horn?" Gelsey asked with a confused look.

"Because why not really." Kazuo said smiling. "I figured that no one is going to use this thing so I might as well use it."

"Do you even know what it does?"

"Nope." Kazuo said smiling. Gelsey had a worried look on her face as he did.

"We're not going to win this." She muttered under her breath.

"Now, before I introduce the opponent, do the three of you have anything to say to our contestants?" Skell asked the three behind him.

"Go Gelsey!" Lucette cheered.

"I say Clint has this in the bag." Estwynn said confidently. "Giving him his bow just ensures it." He grinned. Derek didn't say anything for he just kept a close eye on Kazuo.

"Great! Now, for our second round we have..." Skell trailed off as the gates holding the creatures slowly rose up. Moments later a blue scaled lizard-like head with two pointed horns at the side popped out of the shadows of the holding cell followed by a second and a third. After a while the three heads were shown to be connected to one body through blue long scaly necks. The creature roared out loudly as icy breaths poured out of its mouth as it did. Along the ridges of its spine were long spikes that were as white as snow.

"Cryo, The Frost Hydra!" The co-host exclaimed. The crowd continued to cheer as the creature stared menacingly at the three contestants.

"Great! A head for each of us..." Gelsey said sarcastically. "How thoughtful..."

"Hmm, if we cut off one head will it still be able to fight normally?" Kazuo started pondering. "Or better yet, will the neck still be able to move?"

"Before the match starts lets fill in that crater real quick." Skell brought out his panel once more. Inputting a couple commands the large crater suddenly fixed itself with no traces of it being there were left. "And with that done let the second round...begin!"

With that call, the Hydra blasted out beams of ice from all three of it's heads aimed towards the contestants. All three of them managed to move out of the way of the attack. As they did, a large build up of ice spiking out was created from where they all stood.

Clint, quickly composing himself, held his right hand forwards and a light-green magic sigil suddenly formed in-front of him. Moments later a hawk suddenly flew out from the sigil leaving behind a trail of light as it flew. Quickly pulling out an arrow he immediately notched it on to his bow. Pulling back on the string the arrow was sent flying and he ran off to reposition himself after.

The arrow now about to hit the Hydra just bounced off as it did. "Tsk." Clint sounded as he continued to run around the Hydra with another arrow in hand. Letting lose another shot the arrow this time around pierced through the Hydra's scales but proved to still be ineffective for it barely did a thing.

The three heads all turning around to follow Clint's movements all let lose another beam of ice towards him. The beam was just following closely behind Clint and was almost about to hit when a barrage of bolts suddenly pelted one of the heads Stopping it's attack for now, the head that got hit turned to face where the shots came from only to see Gelsey aiming her bowgun at it. Letting out a low growl, the head fired a separate beam towards Gelsey.

"Uh oh." She said as she jumped and rolled out of the way of the attack. As she got back up, she soon saw Kazuo standing idly. "Hey Kazuo!" She called out. "It would be really helpful if you use that staff of yours and do magic right about now." She added as she a few more bolts. Clint was shown doing the same as he shot an arrow at the sky. Multiple arrows started raining down on the Hydra but most pf it just bounced off it's back.

"Yes. That would be useful but-" Kazuo cut himself off as he ducked under a tail swing. "But I can't use magic right now." He continued. "This staff is just aesthetic really."

"What!? What do you mean by that?" Gelsey yelled fired a couple more bolts. The bowgun made a click sound to signal that it was out of shots. "Shit." She cursed as she pulled out the mag and threw it aside. She grabbed a different one to try and reload but she got blasted away when the Hydra slammed it's long tail in-front of her.

"Aaaah!" She screamed as she was sent flying back. She started to roll fast on the ground as she landed before stopping after hitting the wall. "Ugh..." Gelsey groaned in pain as she attempted to get up. A couple of small scratches and bruising were visible across her face, arms and legs. Standing up now, she soon saw the beast staring down at her with icy breath escaping from its mouth. She tried to run away but stumbled down in the process.

The Hydra now looking down on her, all three heads of it blasted her with it's icy attack. As the attack hit the entire portion of the wall froze into solid ice with icicles spiking out from it. Inside the frozen casing was Gelsey trapped in ice. Moments later her body flickered out.

"And Gelsey is the first one to go down!" Skell announced. "This will be a massive hit to the Yellow Chocobos if the two still managed to win this."

"Oh no." Lucette said fearfully.

With Gelsey now gone, the Hydra turned it's attention back to the two boys standing behind it. Walking slowly towards them, it let out a low growl as it stared menacingly at them.

"Well, what now hotshot?" Kazuo asked Clint with a huge grin. The latter just scoffed before running off to the side with another arrow in hand. He started quickly firing a barrage of arrows at the Hydra. "Okay then. Time to see what this horn can do."

The camera quickly catching up with Clint showed he was shooting his arrows at the Hydra. Most of the shots just kept bouncing off of it. The Hydra just brushed off each of the attacks as it slowly walked closer to Clint. The Hydra blasted out another beam but this time it shot ahead of Clint instead of trailing behind.

Clint, caught by surprise, quickly double tapped to run the other way. Managing to do so, he was able to get away from the blast but the beam was now following him and it was quickly catching up. As the beam was about to hit Clint, a loud horn blast was suddenly heard and Clint's body was suddenly shrouded in a light-green vail and was able to out run the Hydra's attack.

"Hmm, so that's what this horn does." Kazuo said to himself. He suddenly got an idea. "What would happen if I changed the tune." Taking in a deep breath Kazuo blew the horn with a much for stronger tune.

Clint, still under the horns effect, suddenly felt a surge in strength as the vail around him turned from green to red. Realizing now what was happening, he suddenly stopped in place and aimed another arrow. Letting the arrow fly, the arrow this time around didn't bounce off the Hydra's scales for it managed to penetrate straight through it as it punctured the throat of the middle head.

Letting out a pain filled roar, the Hydra stopped it's attack for the middle head was shaking furiously around. The two other heads snapped back at it as the middle head bashed them both. With the Hydra now distracted, Clint fired another arrow straight up into the air to make it rain down arrows once more. As each arrow rained down on the Hydra, all of them were sinking deep into it's head, neck, and back causing it to roar out in pain once more.

Roaring out once more, the Hydra just shook of the pain and started charging towards Clint at a very fast pace. The latter standing his ground aimed three arrows at the enraged beast to try and finish it off but the moment he fired his arrows another horn blast was heard turning his veil from red to blue.

"Hey! I learned a new tune!" Kazuo said proudly. "But I wonder what it does though?"

All the arrows just bouncing off the Hydra's chest once again proved ineffective for the Hydra just kept up it's charge. With the Hydra now close, Clint tried to run away but was to slow for he got head-butted by one of the Hydra's heads sending him flying straight into a wall. Clint hitting the wall with such force caused it to crack with some small bits crumbling down. As he fell straight to the ground everyone was shocked to see that Clint still managed to get up as if he wasn't hit with such a force.

"What!" Skell yelled in shock after seeing Clint still managing to get up. "How did he live that!?" He soon saw Clint still able to walk with only a minor limp.

"The only explanation I can think of is the tune Kazuo played was a defence buff." Estwynn answered trying to process what he saw.

The camera panned back to Kazuo looking towards Clint with a straight look. "Hmm, interesting." He said with a grin. "What would happen if I blew this a little bit calmer." As he blew it the way he mentioned, the veil around Clint turned from blue to white. Clint's body started to feel lighter as if he hasn't fought or did anything yet for he no longer felt tired. Kazuo taking notice soon realized what he just did. "Oh cool, a recovery tune."

Clint, feeling a lot better, quickly picked his bow up from the ground and readied another arrow. He soon took off running once more. The Hydra letting loose another roar fired off another beam of ice except for the middle head that seemed to have a hard time to even charge one up. Clint spotting a weakness whistled for his hawk.

Hearing his hawk's cry from the distance, it soon dove low from flying high up to glide next to Clint. With the hawk now beside him, he pointed his hawk to fly up towards one of the Hydra's heads to distract and provide an opening. Letting out another cry, the hawk quickly flew up and went straight for the the Hydra's right head.

Ripping quickly through the air, the hawk aimed towards the Hydra's right eye. As the hawk neared it quickly swung his sharp talons forward. Moments later the Hydra let out a loud roar with it's right head causing it to lose focus with it's attack. The hawk was soon spotted flying away from the Hydra with some blood dripping from it's talons. With the right head distracting the other two due to the sudden shock, Clint took this opportunity to quickly get close to it.

"What is he doing?" Estwynn questioned as he watched Clint run towards the Hydra. He soon saw Clint standing next to it's large leg trying to avoid to get stomped. Moments later he watched Clint jump up and grabbed hold of it's leg before proceeding to climb up. "He's going to get himself killed." He said while shaking his head.

"Hey look! Clint is already climbing up it's neck!" Skell announced to them with a big smile. Like what the co-host said, Clint was shown already half-way up the neck of the middle head. As he continued to climb up the Hydra's neck, Kazuo was shown standing far away from the Hydra thinking to himself.

"I wonder..." Kazuo pondered as he lifted up his horn. He soon blasted out a horrid, ear-piercing sound out of it. The sound of the horn had no effect on Clint this time around but affected the Hydra instead. The Hydra hearing the horrid noise started thrashing and flailing around at the same time letting out loud roars. "Hmm, It seems like intentionally playing the horn bad doesn't have a negative effect on people; only monsters." He said to himself.

Clint, still on the Hydra's neck, was holding on tight as he continued to climb further up. As he reached the top he soon grabbed hold of one of the long horns of the Hydra as he pulled out his dagger. Raising it up high, he forcefully jabbed the Hydra's middle head with his dagger causing it to sink deep. Letting out a loud wail the Hydra was now rampaging now as it tried to shake off Clint from the top of it's head.

Holding on as tight as he could, Clint wrapped his entire arm around the long horn in attempt to secure himself longer. Ripping the dagger out of the Hydra's skull, blood started to trickle down the blade of his dagger. With the dagger now out he jabbed it deep into the Hydra's head once more. The moment he did the Hydra started to rampage and move much more rampant that Clint could barely hold on anymore.

As Clint continued to do the same thing over and over, the middle head's shaking suddenly got weaker and soon started to collapse. Clint now realizing what he did was enough, he let go of the Hydra's horn and started to slide down it's neck. He soon managed to slide down all the way to the Hydra's back just as the head fell hard onto the ground. Clint soon dropped down from the Hydra's back and proceeded to take off running.

"Impressive." Kazuo smiled at him as Clint approached. The latter didn't say anything and gave him a cold look as he ran passed. "So, what about the other two heads?" He asked as he turned around to face where Clint was heading. He grimaced as he heard the Hydra let out another loud roar behind him. "Hmm, I guess it didn't like getting one of it's heads killed."

The camera now showcasing the Hydra once more revealed the remaining two heads to be snarling at them. It soon started to charge towards the two dragging the dead head along the ground. As it continued to run the neck of the dead head somehow got entangled around the Hydra's legs causing it to trip over itself. The neck got ripped off of the body as well during the entire process.

"Oh god." Lucette covered her mouth for she was about to gag when she saw it get ripped off.

"Hmm, I guess losing a head make's the Hydra dumber apparently." Kazuo said as he was shown with one hand under his chin. He soon saw the other two heads still squirming around weakly. "Interesting...the other two still aren't dead." He slowly started to approach the downed Hydra.

As he got near the left head it started to snap at him with it's jaws but Kazuo was able to back-step out of it. The head fell straight to the ground the moment it missed. Kazuo dragged his hand on the Hydra's head to feel it's scaly face.

"So this is what a dragon feels like." He said with a smile. He stopped moving the moment he reached the Hydra's eye. "I never really imagined that I would be killing a dragon in-front of international T.V. but I guess there's a first for everything." Kazuo says as he dropped his horn and pulled out his sceptre. He raised his sceptre above the Hydra's eye with the bottom of it pointing down. He was about to bring it down when he stopped all of a sudden.

"But then again I'm curious what would happen if I didn't take a once in a life time opportunity such as this." Kazuo thought aloud as he pulled his sceptre to the side. "Eh, screw it. It's going to die from blood loss based on the amount it's spewing out." He turned his back on the Hydra. He picked his horn from the ground and started to walk away. The virtual crowd started booing as he did while Kazuo chuckled it off.

"Well, the Hydra is good as dead at this point so..." Skell trailed off as the camera jumped to him. He soon got up and cleared his throat. "Congratulations Kazuo and Clint! The two of you have, more or less, successfully beaten Cryo thus earning your team points!" He announced to them.

"Since Clint did the most dirty work he gets the five points for his team. Kazuo gets three points for, lack of a better term, helping. While Gelsey gets none for her team since she died." Skell announced the points. "And with that, the score goes as follows: Blue Nagas with 10, Red Dragons with 6, and Yellow Chocobos with 3." He added.

"Really? Not even one point?" Lucette pouted at him. She was staring at him with widened eyes that started glistening a bit.

"I'm sorry but rules are rules." The co-host answered her. "And If you don't stop acting like that I might reduce a point for your team." He warned.

"Fine." Lucette silently muttered to herself as she crossed her arms and looked to the side.

"Great work Clint!" Estwynn congratulated him from their booth. Clint didn't even bother to look his way as he casually walked towards the gate under the booth.

"What about you Derek? Anything you want to say to Kazuo?" Skell asked him as he looked his way. Derek just ignored him as continued on to stare coldly at Kazuo walking towards them.

"Thank you Derek!" Kazuo waved at him just as he walked underneath them.

With the two of them now by the front gate it soon slowly opened up. The duo soon walked inside and soon disappeared from view as they walked deeper in. Moments later three silhouettes took their place that slowly approached the camera.

"Okay! With the two of them out of the way it's time for the third round!" Skell announced. The crowd started cheering once more. "For the third round we have Janet of the Red Dragons, Blake of the Yellow Chocobos, and Ginger of the Blue Nagas!" He named each one. Soon after, the three mentioned all walked out of the gate walking side by side.

Blake was shown walking in-between the two girls waving at the crowd cheering for them. Ginger walked casually beside him with her arms crossed and a confident look on her face. And lastly, Janet was just walking on the other side of him with a small smile on her face.

"Lets go Blake!" Lucette cheered him on excitedly. "Oh, and you too Ginger." She added with less enthusiasm.

"Gee, thanks Lucette." Ginger rolled her eyes.

"Um, thanks, I guess." Blake waved at her sheepishly. Lucette started giggling as he did.

"Okay. Time to reveal the weapons our contestants will be wielding!" Skell announced as he brought out his panel. The weapon select screen soon appeared in-front of he trio as well. "The three of them will be choosing from the following: The Dual Blades, The Lance, The Longsword, and The Switch Axe." The weapons all appeared on the screen. "Ginger. You may choose first."

Ginger, approaching the screen, only gave a confident grin as she scanned all the weapons. Reaching out her hand she had chosen the Dual Blades for her weapon of choice. The Dual Blades Ginger wields were both serrated and were as long as her arms. She twirled with them both before walking back to stand next to the others.

"Blake. It's your turn."

Blake now taking the place of Ginger in-front of the screen took his time to think about the weapon to choose. Thinking it through for a short while soon came to a conclusion on what weapon to choose. The weapon Blake went with was the Longsword. As the name suggests, the blade of the long sword was almost twice his length and was serrated as well. He dragged the weapon on the ground as he walked back.

"And Lastly, Janet. Time for you to make your choice."

Janet now standing in-front of the weapon select screen didn't take long before making her choice. The weapon she ended up with was the Lance. The Lance Janet ended up wielding was fairly similar to Alice's Gunlance except it didn't have a trigger on it's handle and had a much smaller kite shield instead. She walked back to be with the other two soon after.

"Okay. With our contestants introduced, as well as them having their weapons, its time to reveal who they are up against! But first..." Skell trailed off as he brought out his panel. After inputting some commands the stage got cleared from all the mess that happened during the previous round. The gates holding the dragons slowly opened up soon after.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, for the third round. We. Have." He stopped as a loud howl echoed out from the gates. Moments later a small spikey creature no taller then the contestants bolted out of the gates. It snarled at them threateningly as it stared them down. Sharp diamond-like spikes surrounded the creatures body with similarly featured nails. "Diam, The Diamond Kirin!"

"Hmph, this is going to be a piece of cake." Ginger smiled confidently as she raised up both her blades.

"You got that right." Janet chimed in as pointed her lance towards the Kirin with her shield raised as well.

"Hehe. We'll see about that." Skell muttered under his breath with a devious smile. "With everyone all set. Let the battle...begin!" He announced.

At the very moment he said so, the Kirin suddenly bolted towards the three of them at a very fast pace. As it was running towards them Janet tried to launch it with her cosmic geyser but the Kirin was to fast for the attack to hit.

"Dammit!" Janet cursed as she walked up with her weapons raised. She tried to jab her lance at it but the Kirin just jumped up and used her as a platform to bounce off of. "Oof." She let out as the force of the Kirin's hind legs pushed her down to the ground. With the Kirin now in the air it had its front legs stretched forward with it's diamond claws sticking out as it aimed itself at the other two.

"Oh no you don't." Blake said while spinning around once to give his sword swing more force. The swing was enough to hit the Kirin off it's course and went tumbling off to the side.

"Go, Blake!" Lucette cheered.

"Nice swing." Ginger praised as she patted Blake's shoulder. "But now it's my turn." She walked right in-front of him. Ginger held both her blades to the sides as she strutted towards the Kirin.

The camera moving ahead of her showed the Kirin was already standing right back up. The Kirin seeing Ginger closing in started to growl as it slowly circle around her. Ginger standing in the middle just had a confident look on her face as she watch the creature circle around her. Twirling both her blade she taunted the Kirin by signalling for it to come and get her.

"Um, Ginger? I don't think taunting it is a good idea." Blake said with a worried look as he held his long sword tight. He tried to approach her but Ginger just signalled him to stop.

"Don't worry, I got this." She assured without even looking his way. "Now come and get me you overgrown lizard." She taunted the Kirin once more.

The Kirin snarling at her for a bit soon ran towards her with it's sharp fangs exposed. As it got close, it decided to jump at her in attempt to bring her down. Ginger, still looking confident, twisted to her right at the very moment the Kirin got close to hitting her. With the Kirin's attack missing, it landed right in-front of her exposing it for a counter attack.

"Hah!" Ginger yelled as she struck the Kirin with both her blades in a scissor-like fashion. As her attack hit, it barely did anything to the Kirin for no obvious signs of damage were shown on it's body. "What!?" Ginger's eyes widened when she realized it didn't do anything.

With Ginger now the one exposed for an attack, the Kirin quickly turned its body around and swung it's long tail at Ginger. Without much time to react Ginger got struck by the Kirin's tail and fell down almost instantly to her side.

"Ginger!" Blake called out as he ran towards her. He suddenly stopped when the Kirin blocked his way growling menacingly at him. "Get out of my way!" He yelled at it as he swung his long sword down on it. The Kirin just simply jumped to the side to avoid Blake's attack.

With Blake now wide open, the Kirin pounced on him but was suddenly bashed out of the way before the attack could land. Looking to his side Blake soon saw Janet standing beside him with her shield raised.

"Go! I got this." She said to him as she walked passed him. Replying with a nod, Blake ran to Ginger's side.

As Blake got close, he saw that Ginger was slowly getting back up by raising herself up with one arm. "Easy now." He said to Ginger as he crouched down next to her. He placed one arm on her back for support and the other holding on to her left hand as he helped her get back up.

"Ugh...thanks." Ginger groaned a bit as Blake helped her get back up. She stumbled a bit but the prankster was able to hold on to her.

"You okay?" Blake asked. Concern was written all over him as he did.

"Yeah, just a bit dizzy is all." Ginger answered him. Ginger had her left hand on her head while her entire right arm was wrapped around Blake. "If only I knew the damn thing's scales would be that hard this wouldn't have happened."

"Well, just be careful next time." Blake said to her. Ginger was about to snap back at him with a response but stopped when Blake said, "I mean it," with a serious look.

"Fine just- Look out!" Ginger yelled at him as she pushed him away. As she did Ginger got pulled down with him since Blake's arms were still wrapped around her. The Kirin went flying above them immediately after

"Sorry!" Janet was heard apologizing off screen. The camera panning downwards revealed that Ginger fell on top of Blake in a less desirable position. The two were not only on top of each other but ended up locking lips by accident. "Hey, are you twoooo...um, *ahem* I don't think you guys should be doing that." Janet said awkwardly. "I'm just gonna um...Oh hey! Its getting back up. Let me go and handle it." She ran off-screen.

The two of them still locked together were staring at each other with wide eyes in shock. After a few seconds the two of them immediately pulled away from each other as Ginger pushed herself off. Both of them sat up but Ginger had her back facing Blake while he had his mouth covered.

"Oh my god. I am so sorry!" Blake apologized. He was still shocked from what happened. Ginger didn't say anything for she just looked down at the ground.

Up in the co-host's booth, Skell's and Estwynn's jaws both were dropped at the events of what happened. Both of them were shown to have shocked looks on their faces except for Lucette who looked to be holding back her anger. Moments later, she couldn't hold back anymore and ended up yelling.

"Ginger! How dare you kiss Blake before I could!" Lucette yelled angrily. Both Skell and Estwynn had their ears covered except for Derek who just shrugged her off.

"It was an accident!" Ginger finally spoke to defend herself. "I didn't mean anything by it I swear!" She further made her point. "And besides, he's a bad kisser. I wouldn't even do it if he won the entire competition."

"Hey!" Blake reacted getting offended by her statement. "I'll have you know that I'm an excellent one at that. If it was on purpose then you wouldn't be saying those words right about now." He argued back at her.

"Uh huh. Really now? Tell me, how many girls have you made out with then?" Ginger snapped back at him with her arms crossed.

"Umm...a few." Blake replied while looking off to the side.

"Really now?" Ginger raised a brow at him. "Fine. Give me a name then." She grinned.

"Well um their is um..." Blake trailed of as he tried to think of a name. "Wait, how can you even say that I'm a bad kisser? Tell me, how many guys have YOU made out with then." He said trying to change the topic.

"You don't need to know that!" Ginger replied while pouting. "And besides, you're most likely jealous that someone like me wouldn't want someone like you." She said highly about herself.

"Given your attitude I doubt any guy would want you." Blake said back at her. "I wouldn't even bother as well." He added.

"Oh please, It's not like I'll fall for you no matter how hard you try." Ginger declared to him.

"Really now?" Blake said with a smirk. "Fine then, we'll see."

"Yeah, we'll- wait, what?" Ginger said with a confused look. Blake started to chuckle a bit.

"Ginger! Stop trying to steal Blake from me!" Lucette yelled at her once more.

"Huh? I'm not! I even said he had no chance." Ginger answered back as she turned to face her. She soon heard Blake laughing behind her. "You! Don't think for even one moment that your plans will work on me!" She said pointing at Blake.

The prankster just continued to laugh. "Oh you look cute when you're angry." Blake complimented her with a sly grin. Ginger was about to hit him but stopped when Skell yelled at them.

"The three of you stop this right now!" Skell demanded from them with an angry tone. "I'm trying to host a dragon slaying challenge here. Not a bloody love triangle!" He yelled at them. The three of them just kept quiet and didn't say anything else. "Good. Now, the two of you, pick up your swords and start-" He was suddenly cut off when the crowd started to get loud all of a sudden. "What the?"

Everyone looking around to see what was all the commotion all about when they finally saw what caused it. Off to one side of the arena was Janet standing proudly on top of the now dead Kirin with the lance drove deep into it's head. The ground around her was completely dug up with a lot of claw marks everywhere. Moments later, Janet pulled her lance out of the Kirin's head and raised it up high causing the crowd to cheer even more.

"Did she just solo Diam?" Skell said with a shocked look.

"Yes, she did. You missed how great it was while you were watching the trio bicker." Estwynn answered him.

"Well that settles it then. Congratulations Janet, you've won the third round for your team." The co-host said to her; still in utter disbelief. "That means Janet gets five points while Blake and Ginger both get three. Making the total being thirteen for blue, eleven for red, and six for yellow." He said the results

"You got to be kidding me?" Ginger said dumbfounded. "I...I need some time to think about this." She started to walk off towards the gate.

"Yeah, me too." Blake followed suit.

Janet, still basking in her victory, was waving at the crowd when she realized the two were already heading towards the gate. Taking one final bow she started running towards the gate and entered a few seconds behind the other two.

(Confessional)

Blake: This is going to be my greatest prank ever! I've dealt with girls like her before and it always end up my way *grins*. Once she's fallen for me *chuckles* she won't know what hit her.

Ginger: I. Will. NEVER. Fall for him! I can swear it right here and now that whatever attempts he pulls will not phase me no matter what is. I really don't see what Lucette sees in him to begin with.

Lucette: Ginger may be my friend but I'm not going to lose to her! Not even the slightest. I will just have to work harder for Blake to like me more instead.

(End Confessional)

The co-host, Skell, was shown on screen once more. He had a wide grin on his face for he had finally composed himself. Lucette sitting behind him looked a lot calmer now after she finished her confessional. The other two boys, Derek and Estwynn, were just sitting in there in anticipation for the next round. Moments later, Skell announced the next round of contestants.

"Okay. After that outstanding battle that I clearly did not miss. It's time to introduce the next contestants." He announced. The crowd started cheering once more. The gates below them started opening up with three figures walking out of it. "For the fourth round we have Tristan of the Red Dragons, Leonard of the Yellow Chocobos, and Paris of the Blue Nagas!"

The three mentioned were soon out into the arena with the crowd cheering for them. Tristan just walked out of the gate calmly. Leonard was shown with his arms crossed as he walked out with a scowl. And lastly, Paris was shown walking like a run-way model with one hand on her hip. The three of them stopped as they reached the centre.

"It sure is nice of Chris for us to have a crowd." Paris said with a smile as she just stared straight at the gate ahead of them. "Don't you think so Leonard?"

"Like I said to you before, I don't like small talk." Leonard replied without even looking at her.

"Oh come on, it's just a harmless question." Paris giggled a bit. Leonard didn't bother to answer back and just decided to ignore her.

The camera returned to show Skell. "Now, with our contestants revealed, It's time for them to choose their weapons." He brought out his panel once more and the weapon screen appeared in front of the trio. "The three of you will be choosing from the following: The Switch Axe, The Hammer, The Great Sword, and The Heavy Bow gun. Paris, you get to choose first."

With a worried look, Paris walked up to the weapon screen. Her eyes were darting quickly between all four weapons as she had a hard time trying to choose. After a long wait, she finally went with the Great Sword. The blade of her sword was wider then herself and was almost as tall as her. She had a hard time carrying it as Paris dragged her sword back to where the other two were.

"Leonard. Its now your turn."

Leonard walking up to the screen now, he examined each weapon carefuly as he approached. After a couple moments of thinking it through he went with the Switch Axe. The Switch Axe he held looked to be a normal axe except it had a much thicker body and has a sword's hilt with a switch on the guard. Pressing on the switch, blades suddenly slide out of the body on each side with the axe head pulled in to connect itself with the blades. Now knowing his weapon's capabilites he walked back towards the others with a wide grin on his face.

"And lastly, Tristan. It's now your turn."

Tristan now in-front of the weapon screen, it didn't take long for him to choose his weapon. The weapon he went with was the Hammer. The Hammer he held was very large and heavy for the head of it was just as large as Tristan's upper half but he was able to carry it easily due to his mechanical arm. Walking now back to the others, the weapon screen dissapeared and the camera went back to Skell.

"Okay. With our contestants now armed, lets clean up the stage first before we introduce today's special guest." The co-host said as he pulled out his panel. Pressing a few buttons and soon all the claw marks disappeared along with the dead Kirin. The gate holding the dragons slowly opened up once more.

"For the fourth round. Our big bad lizard is Blitz, The Lightning Wyrm!" Skell announced. As he did, sparks of electricity started flying out from the opened gates. Moments later a giant serpentine creature with yellow scales came slithering out of the gate with it's body surging with electricity. "Now. Let the battle...begin!"

Letting out a hiss, the Wyrm started slithering towards them while leaving behind a trail of electricity. As it got closer and closer to them it's entire body was wrapped around a veil of electricity and soon launched itself towards them.

"You're not going to get pass me!" Leonard roared as he stepped forward with his blade in hand. Raising his weapon above his head, he swung it down the moment the Wyrm got close but just before it could hit the Wyrm disappeared. "What!?" His widened at the disappearing act. Moments later a bolt of electricity suddenly struck Leonard from behind. "Aaaah!" He yelled before falling to his knees.

"Leonard!" Paris called out to him. Dropping her sword, she tried to run over and help him but stopped when sparks of electricity started to crack between her and Leonard. Moments later the Wyrm appeared towering right over her. "Ah!" The Wyrm was about to lunge at her with it's large jaws gaping but cannon fire suddenly stopped it's attack.

"Get out of there. Now!" Tristan urged for her to go. Replying with a nod she quickly ran off. As the Wyrm shook off the shock of the attack, it tried to follow Paris but stopped when more cannon fire started hitting it. "Where do you think you're going?" Letting out another hiss, the Wyrm went for Tristan instead.

As Paris finally got close to Leonard, she soon notice his back was slightly burnt with some smoke flowing out of it. "Hey, are you alright?" She asked as she had one arm over his right shoulder.

After making a few grunting sounds Leonard spoke up. "Urg, yeah..." He said through gritted teeth. Leonard tried to stand back up but felt a stinging sensation on his back as he did. "Ah!" He fell down on to his arms. "Damn, that fucking stings."

"Your back most likely got burnt from the attack. Let me heal you up real quick to ease the pain." Paris said as she stood right in-front of him. After doing a couple of dance moves, a light-green aura started to envelope Leonard and soon after he was able to get back up. "Feeling better?"

"Yeah. It still stings a bit but I can manage." Leonard replied as he swung his weapon over his shoulder. "Wait, were's your weapon?" He asked as he noticed Paris didn't have her sword with her.

"It was to heavy to carry so I had to drop it." She replied with a frown.

Letting out a sigh, Leonard grabbed one of his knives and gave it to Paris. "Here. Take it before I change my mind." He said to her without even looking her way.

Paris seeing his offer decided to take the weapon from him. "Thanks." She replied with a small smile. Without saying anything else, Leonard took off to face the electric Wyrm. "Hey. Wait up!" She called out to him as she followed suit.

The camera jumping ahead of them showed Tristan still fighting off against tue Wyrm. They were both staring straight at each other waiting for the other to make a move. As the two waited, the sound of footsteps nearing agrivated the Wyrm causing it to flicker out into sparks once more.

"Where did that damn thing go?" Leonard asked as he got close.

"I don't know." Tristan replied as he took on a defensive stance. "Just keep your heads up." He added.

Everyone, standing their ground, was glancing around to spot where the Wyrm might strike next. Tension filled the air around them for they could be struck down at any given moment. After a while of waiting, the sound of sparks flying was heard and soon a bolt of lightning the struck the ground beside Paris.

"Aaah!" Paris covered herself with her arms to protect herself from the blinding flashes. A few seconds later the Wyrm appeared towering over her. Gasping, Paris tried to run back but the Wyrm managed to wrap it's long tail around her before she could escape. Paris started to yelp in pain for the Wyrm was squeezing her tight.

As the Wyrm continued to squeeze her tightly, the dancer started to look blue for she was almost out of breath. Trying to hold on much longer, Paris was almost at her limit for her vision started to blur.

"Ge...aw...y...om...r...sterd..." She heard someone yell. Moments later she saw something jumped right in-front of her and felt the strong grip around her loosen. She soon collapsed straight on to the ground for the Wyrm no longer had a grip on her. She soon felt herself being dragged on the ground.

"...ey!...wake...p!.." She heard someone else say to her as she felt she was being shaken. After a few seconds, her vision started to focus and soon saw Tristan right in front of her. "Wake up!" She clearly heard him say this time around.

Panting and breathing heavily Paris suddenly sat back up. "*pant* What happened!?" She asked in shock. She suddenly felt a cold numbness around her body. "Gods, I can barely feel my legs."

"The damn snake appeared right next to you and squeezed you tight." Tristan explained to her. "I thought it was over for you since I didn't have a clear shot when Leonard went in and struck the thing." He further added.

"W-wait, really? Where is he then? Is he alright?" Paris bombarded the mechanic with questions out of concern.

"He's over there." Tristan pointed behind them. The camera pointing to where Tristan pointed showed that Leonard was grasping onto his weapon tight while traces of blood dripped from the blade. A few seconds later a bolt of lightning was aimed towards him but Leonard was able to jump out of the way.

"I need to...go and help!" Paris struggled to get back up.

"No. Don't. You're barely in any condition to move so stay put." Tristan insisted as he stopped her from getting back up.

"But I have to! Otherwise my team would think I'm weak and useless!" Paris argued back at him as she shoved him aside. She stood back up but grimaced due to the stinging sensation she felt coursing through her legs. She started to walk up to where Leonard was but was stopped when Tristan grabbed on to her.

"You're going to get yourself killed with that recklessness of yours." Tristan said looking a bit irritated with the smaller girl in-front of him. "You're going to earn the three points anyways just by staying alive."

Paris, stopping for a moment, pulled her arm away from Tristan. She soon ran off towards Leonard. Letting out a deep sigh, Tristan followed her right after he picked up his hammer from the ground. With the two of them now re-joining Leonard, he was soon shown already looking winded for he was breathing in heavily.

"Hey, sorry I took to long." Tristan said as he stood beside him. "Little miss dancer here wouldn't sit down."

"What the? I risked my life and my team's chance on gaining a comeback just to save you." Leonsrd said as he took notice of Paris. "Get out of here. Now!" He demanded.

"Hey! I'm still capable of fighting. I'm not about to let down my team just because of someone being a hero for a change." Paris argued back at him. Leonard was about to argue back when the sound of electricity cracking was soon heard by them.

"Ugh, fine, but if you get caught out again then I'll just let you die instead." Leonard said to her with a serious look. Paris just smirked at him.

The Wyrm soon appeared right across from them in flash of electricity glaring straight at them. Letting out an ear-piercing screech, the Wyrm darted across the field to reach them. Waves of electricity was flowing throughout it's body as it did. With the Wyrn now close to it's targets, it suddenly lunged itself towards Paris.

"Woah!" Paris was able to move out of the way in time as she jumped to her side. She failed to find her footing as she landed but was able to quickly pick herself up. The Wyrm landed far ahead off her.

"Hah!" Leonard roared as he suddenly leaped forward with his blade is sword mode raised up. As he neared he swung his sword down while pressing the button to turn it into axe mode. He was able to strike the Wyrm on top of it's head but wasn't able to do much damage for it flickered out into sparks. "Dammit!" He cursed as he landed.

As they all stood in anticipation for where the Wyrm might strike, sparks of electricity started cracking near Tristan. "Look out!" Paris warned him. Heeding her warnings Tristan managed to side-step a bolt of lightning that was aimed towards him. The Wyrm soon appeared at the end of the attack.

"Take this!" He yelled at the Wyrm as Tristan swung his hammer around. He managed to hit it at the side with a force strong enough to launch it a couple feet away from him. "Hah!" He fired a barrage of cannon shots at it causing large cloud of smoke to form surrounding it. Silence was heard without electricity sparking happened for a while.

"Is it over?" Paris asked no one in particular as she watched the cloud of smoke intently.

"I'm not sure." Tristan answered her without taking his eyes away from the smoke.

As the three of them watched the smoke cloud they started to feel at ease for they taught it was over due to nothing happening. With nothing has yet to happen the three of them started to loosen up their stances when bolts of electricity suddenly flew out from the smoke. Seconds later the smoke disappeared revealing the Wyrm looking a bit different.

"What the? It has a second form!?" Leonard said in surprise.

The Wyrm was now completely different for it's scales were a complete shade of light-blue with blue-ish electricity coursing through it. Its head now gained three long horns; one on its head and two on the sides of its chin in the shape of lightning bolts. It also gained a spike on the tip of it's tail in the shape of a lightning bolt as well. Blueish white light was flowing through both its eyes as it stared at them menacingly.

"That's right Leonard. Blitz here has a second form." Skell answered him. The crowd started to cheer wildly. "Now...let the second-half...begin!"

Charging up a bit, electricity was flowing through the gaps of its horns and soon launched itself like an arrow towards Tristan. The Wyrm's entire body was enveloped in blue-ish white electricity as it did. The latter was able to move out of the way but instead of the Wyrm stopping it suddenly spaz a bit before redirecting itself back towards Tristan.

"Aaaah!" Tristan yelled as he was struck down by the attack. The Wyrm managed to phase through his body and continued on with it's flight. With it still having momentum, it redircted itself once more and struck Tristan a second time. "Aaaaah!" He yelled in pain as his body was over flowing with electricity as the Wyrm carried him with it. Moments later his mechanical armor and arm exploded due to the over flow causing his body to disappear.

"Shit." Leonard cursed. The Wyrm landed right across from him glaring straight at him. "Grrr. You're going down!" He soon rushed towards the Wyrm at a breakneck speed.

"Leonard. Wait!" Paris called out to him as she tried to chase after him with her own skill but failed when she felt the stinging feeling through her legs. "Gah." She fell down to one knee.

With his weapon in hand, he raced across the arena to strike down the Wyrm. "Hah!" He yelled as he swung his weapon to the side the moment he got close. As his attack was about to hit the Wyrm, his target suddenly vanished. "What!?" His eyes widened as he stopped to look around. Moments later he suddenly got impaled through the chest by the Wyrm's sharp pointed tail.

"But...how..." He said weakly as blood started to drip from his mouth. He looked up to see Skell smirking at him. Lucette was shown to be shocked at what she saw with her eyes widened and her mouth covered with her hands. Moments later high volts of electricty was sent flowing down through the Wyrm's tail and straight to Leonards body. His body was convulsing madly as the electricity flowed through him. Leonard soon flickered out a few moments later.

"Oh no." Paris gasped at the sight.

With Leonard now gone and only one target left, the Wyrm turned it's head around and stared menacingly at Paris. Slowly slithering across the arena towards her, sparks of electricity was cracking out through it's entire length as it did.

Paris with no hope left was slowly backing away from the Wyrm as it got closer and closer. As she continued to move she felt her back was already pressed against the wall with nowhere else to go. With the Wyrm now towering over her she just slumped down for she knew what was to come. A bright flash of electricity was last scene from where she was with her body no where to be scene.

With all three contestants now defeated, the Wyrm let loose a loud roar towards the sky with its body sparking with electricity. The crowd started cheering at the same time it did. The battle now over the Wyrm slithered it's way back to the holding area with the gates closing soon after.

"Well, that was a shocker!" Skell said grinning. Everyone in the booth with him just rolled their eyes. "Though in hindsight having a creature that can move in lightning fast speeds that has a secondary form is a bit cheating on my end for choosing it but hey I got to follow the script." He shrugged.

"So you mean to tell us that this round was rigged?" Estwynn confronted him. "How is that fair!?" He added.

"Yeah! Why go and do something as unfair as that." Lucette chimed in.

"Hold on. Let me explain." Skell raised his hands up in defence. "Chris just said that it wouldn't be fun if every round was a complete victory so he made sure that each dragon would ramp up in difficulty to ensure that at least one round will be a complete wipe." He explained to them. He just received glares from the two of them.

"Fine. At least give them points for beating the first form." Estwynn said with his arms crossed.

"Ugh, fine. Let me just see who did the most damage so that I could spread out the points evenly." Skell says as he pulled out his panel. After inputting in a couple commands a damage graph was shown right in-front of them. "Hmm, interesting." He says before turning around to face the crowd with the camera pointing at him.

"Okay. After a quick discussion I've decided to give our contestants some merit points for bringing Blitz down to his second form." He announced to the camera. "After doing a quick review of the damage graphs I've decided to give the one that dealt the most three points!" He explained.

"Now. The one that did the most damage was Leonard! Earning his team three points." He revealed to them. "Making the overall results being thirteen for blue, eleven points for red and nine points yellow." He added it all up. "With that out of the way. It's time for the fifth and final round!" He exclaimed. The crowd started to cheer once more.

The gates holding the last three contestants flew open with the last three walking out. "For the final round we have Laren of the Red Dragons, Kali of the Yellow Chocobos, and Phoebe of the Blue Nagas!" He named each one and three of them all walked out one at a time.

"Finally! I've been itching all day for my turn!" Kali grinned as she walked out of the gate.

"Um I-I'm not s-sure if I c-can do this on m-my own." Said Phoebe while she was noticeably shaking in fear.

"Well, lets just do our best." Laren said with a small smile.

With the last trio of contestants now out on to the field, the camera panned towards Skell for him to reveal the weapons one last time. "The weapons that the three of you will get to use are as follows." He paused as he pressed on his panel. The weapon screen appeared for the last time. "The Sword and Shield, The Dual Blades, The Charge Blade, and The Insect Glaive. Phoebe. You get to choose your weapon first."

Phoebe walking towards the weapon screen looked a bit panicked for she clearly was uncertain about the weapon she's going to choose. As her eyes rapidly jump around each weapon she finally chose the one she's going to use. The weapon she chose was the Insect Glaive. The Insect Glaive is a weapon that comes in two parts: The long bone-white glaive she held with her one hand and a large horned Kinsect clinging to her other arm.

"Ah! Get it off!" Phoebe panicked as she saw the large insect on her arm. She started swinging her arm around and soon the insect was sent flying towards the crowd. The crowd was heard gasping moments later.

The camera pointing to where the insect landed showed it had impaled one of the NPC audience members. The NPC disappeared moments later. The insect went hovering back towards Phoebe soon after.

"Oh my. Good thing the crowd are all AI or otherwise we would all be in trouble." Skell said out of relief. "Anyways. Kali. Its now your turn.

Kali now shown to have taken Phoebe's place in-front of the screen was thinking carefully about what she would use. Without taking long she soon went with the Charge Blade. The Charge Blade she held was similar to the one Nathan had except it was a bit shorter to compensate the difference between users. She soon walked back towards the others.

"And finally. The final contestant choose their weapon for the last and final time. Laren. Its now your turn." Skell said a but exasperated.

Laren now standing in-front of the screen just looked between the final two weapons. After a short moment she finally went with the Sword and Shield. The shield she held was much lighter then Dylan's as well as the sword being a bit thinner. Laren with both weapons in-hand now walked back with the others.

"Okay! Now that our final contestants have chosen their weapons. It's time to reveal the final beast for today's challenge." Skell announced as the gates slowly opened.

As the gates were opening the final dragon soon came bursting out of it while coated in flames. The creature had bright red scales with an orange-ish under belly leading from it's bottom jaw all the way to it's tail. Large grey curled horns spiked out from the top of it's head. It landed in all fours with it's massive wings spread out. The dragon folded it's wings back into place.

"The final dragon for today is Vulkan, The Volcanic Dragon!" Skell announced to everyone. The dragon let out a menacing roar and crowd cheered as it did. "Oh boy. I've been waiting for this one to come out." He said looking a bit excited. "With everything now in place. Let the final battle...begin!"

Without any hesitation the dragon flapped it's massive wings a couple times and soon took of flying. It let out a fiery breath as it flew above the three girls scorching the ground around them.

"Ah!" Kali stepped back with one arm covering her from a torrent of flames that formed right in-front of her. "We need to get out of here!" She ran far away from the flames as possible. The other two followed her as well as they reached a clearing in the arena.

"What are we going to do?" Laren asked as the flames were slowly creeping up on them.

"Eek!" Phoebe hunkered down as the dragon blasted fire close to them. "I-I don't w-want to be h-here anymore!" She started to shake in fear.

"Just hang on, Phoebe. We can make it out of this." Laren reassured her as she kneeled down with both arms on Phoebe's shoulders.

"Guys. Look out!" Kali warned them as she turned her around and hunkered down as well. A few moments later the dragon swooped down on them but missed it's attack for it flew right back up. The sudden rush of air though was enough to knock back all three of them.

"Ugh, is everyone okay?" Kali asked as she raised herself up.

"Y-yeah. We're okay." Laren answered her as she still had Phoebe in her arms. "Just a bit shaken." She added.

As the three of them got back up, the dragon let out an ear-piercing roar echoing all around the arena. Everyone that heard it's roar were forced to cover their ears for it was un-bearable to withstand. A few moments later the dragon blasted a powerful fire blast aimed right at the three contestants. A massive explosion occurred with smoke covering the area happen the moment the attack hit.

"Oh my...Is this is it for our final round?!" Skell said in shock for nothing can be seen through the thick fog. Lucette, Estwynn, and Derek didn't say anything else for they were stunned as well.

"Hmph, I doubt it." A male voice answered from behind them. The camera panning behind them showed Chris grinning at them with his arms crossed.

"Chris? What are you doing here?" Skell asked him in surprise.

"Never mind that." The main host waved his hand at him dismissively. "Just keep your eyes on the field." He pointed forward.

With the smoke now clearing it was shown that all three contestants were protected by a large pale-blue barrier. Standing right in-front of them, as well as the one casting the spell, was Phoebe's male doll savior with his right arm pointing forwards with palm wide opened. Spinning right in-front of his right hand was the Scythe, Silvia, for it was the source of the barrier while he held on to his lance with his left. The barrier soon disappeared the moment Savior reached for the scythe.

"What the? I thought boss weapons weren't allowed for this challenge!?" The co-host asked Chris looking even more surprised. The host started to chuckle a bit at his partner.

"Correction. Contestants are the ones who aren't allowed to use said weapons." Chris said while grinning. "Phoebe here isn't the one using the scythe. Her doll is."

"So by that logic, even Clint can do it if he gave his wolf the cutlass?" Estwynn asked Chris. The latter just responded with a nod. "I see." He nodded. Estwynn took a quick glance towards Phoebe then realizes something was off. "Wait, how did Phoebe even summon that thing to begin with without her sceptre?"

"Easy. Phoebe doesn't need it." Skell answered instead of Chris. "She just has that sceptre of hers for something else."

"Okay." Estwynn replied. "She's even stronger that what I initially thought." He thought to himself.

"Now. Enough questions. Lets just sit back and watch the action taking place." Chris says as he pulled out his panel. After inputting a couple commands a large golden throne seat appeared in the booth with them. Pulling out a pair of shades now, he sat back on his chair and watched as the battle progressed.

The camera shifting the scene towards the arena now showed that the two sides were at a stand still. The dragon just letting out a low growl with smoke coming out of it's jaws while glaring at the doll with the three girls standing behind him. A few seconds later the dragon started to charge at them soon followed by Savior.

As the two got close, the dragon swung it's massive claw at the doll but Savior managed to vault over the attack using his lance. With Savior now having an opening, his lance started to spin like a drill and he jabbed it straight into the dragon's side. The attack managed to pierce through the hard scales causing the dragon to roar out.

The dragon turning it's head around to face the doll spewed out flames from it's jaws aimed towards him. Savior stopped his attack and raised the scythe forward but the flames already consumed him before he could do anything. The area around him started to get consumed by the fire as well as the dragon continues to spew out it's attack.

"We got to go help him!" Laren tried to run towards the dragon but Kali stopped her.

"No, wait. Look." Kali says as she pointed towards the fire.

Slowly zooming in towards the flames showed that there was nothing happening yet to it. A few moments later the doll was shown jumping out of the flames leaving behind a trail of smoke. The doll was then shown to be completely un-affected by the attack for only a few burn marks were shown on his scythe arm. The crowd started to cheer at the revelation.

"Wow that doll is strong!" Skell was heard saying while completely awestruck.

With the doll now out of the dragon's fire, he started to spin the scythe above his head for a bit and soon all the fire around him got drawn up. With a vortex of fire now formed, Savior launched the attack the dragon. The dragon tried to fly away from the attack but got hit in the process and fell straight to the ground. The crowd started to cheer even louder as it did.

"Damn, Phoebe might just solo this if this keeps up." Kali thought to herself as she glance towards Phoebe who was cowering behind her. "I need to do something otherwise we risk loosing."

The dragon now getting back up just stumbled a bit before letting out another powerful roar. It soon started to spew out another jet of flames towards the doll.

Savior, slowly walking forward, just spun the scythe right in-front of him to neutralize the flames streaming towards him. As he continued to walk on forward the dragon kept on ramping up the heat on him the closer he got. With the doll now close he stopped the scythe from swinging and immediately slashed it sideways in-front of him. A sonic wave soon came from the scythe swing cutting through the flames and hitting the dragon in the mouth. The dragon was now dazed after getting hit by the attack.

"Wow. What an amazing comeback from Phoebe's doll!" Skell said excitedly. The camera panning behind him showed that Lucette and Estwynn were having a good time watching. Derek though didn't look like he couldn't even be bothered to even clap.

With the dragon still dazed from the attack, Savior jumped up into the air with his scythe raised. Reaching the peak of his jump he slammed down on the dragon's head with his bringing both of them down to the ground. Dust flew up into the air the moment they hit the ground but as soon as it cleared the scythe was shown to be impaled on the dragon's snout. The dragon though was still alive for smoke was still escaping from it's mouth as it breathed in heavily.

The dragon now down with only one thing left to do, Savior held on to his lance with both hands as he raised it right above the dragon's head. With the pointed end of the lance aimed down on the dragon, the doll was about to finish it when a sudden slash came out of nowhere slicing off the doll's left arm. The camera panning to the side showed that Kali was the one who sliced off Savior's arm with her katana glowing.

"K-Kali!? W-what are you d-doing?" Phoebe called out to her with a shocked look on her face. She soon saw Kali follow up her attack with a spinning slash to Savior's waist. "S-stop it!" She pleaded as she saw her doll drop to the ground into three separate pieces.

"I'm sorry Phoebe but I can't risk my team losing. I have to hope for a tie." Kali said looking a bit down as she raised her katana up above the dragon's neck.

As Kali was about to finally finish of the dragon, Phoebe soon took notice her doll was moving on the ground. "N-no! Don't do it!" The doll faced girl cried out once more with tears forming in her eyes.

Squeezing on the blade's trigger Kali was about to finish of the dragon but suddenly dropped her sword when she felt a sudden pain both from her back and chest. Looking down she saw the doll's lance was impaled through her. Her body flickered out moments later.

"No! I-I said s-stop..." Phoebe said with tears flowing from her eyes now as she dropped down on to her knees.

"Um, Phoebe?" Laren kneeled down next to her with one hand over Phoebe's shoulder.

The camera revealing what happened showed that the upper half of the doll was still able to move and had jabbed his lance through Kali's back with his one good arm. Vaulting himself up now he was able to land his upper body behind the dragon's head. Raising the lance up one last time it started to drill once more and Savior immediately jabbed it at the back of the dragon's head. The dragon just jerked it's head for one last final roar before it fell back down dead.

"Damn...I'm at a lost for words here. Who knew Phoebe had it in her to back-stab someone like that. Both literally and metaphorically." Skell says looking quite shocked with what happened.

"Oh wow...who knew Phoebe can be so brutal." Estwynn added in as well.

"Phoebe...how could you?" Lucette's eyes widened as she was taken aback.

Derek just scoffed instead of saying anything as he had his arms crossed.

"N-no...I-I didn't...please stop." Phoebe said in tears as she covered both her ears. She was just looking down with tears dropping from her eyes.

"Phoebe? Are you okay?" Laren asked her looking a bit concerned. The latter just shook her off and ran towards the gate still crying. "Phoebe wait!" The former started to follow her. As both contestants disappeared inside the gates, Savior dispersed into glowing shards of light that flowed away in the wind.

"Well now, with that out of the way, lets-" The co-host was soon cut off by Chris.

"I'll take it from here now." The host said to his partner as he walked right in-front of him. The grumbled something as he sat back down with his arms crossed.

With the main host now taking the spot light, he had on his trademark smile with his eyes closed and arms spread out. Taking in a deep breath he begun to speak to the crowd.

"Ladies and Gentlemen. With that exciting and drama filled round over its time to tally up the results to finish off today's challenge!" The host announced to the crowd as everyone was chanting his name.

"Really? How come they get programmed to chant his name?" Skell complained from his seat as he crossed his arms. Chris hearing what his partner said just ignored him.

As the crowd continued to cheer and chant Chris's name, the host just raised one hand up to signal them to stop. With the virtual crowd now calming down, Chris began to speak up once more.

"The final results are as follows." Chris soon pulled out his own panel and inputted a couple commands for final results to appear. "With eighteen points. Phoebe, and the rest of the Blue Nagas, have won this day's challenge as well as earning them the Awakened stone. Blue Nagas, please walk out into the arena to claim your prize."

After hearing Chris's call the entire Blue Naga team, except Phoebe, walked out into the arena. The crowd cheered them on as they did. With everyone now standing in the centre of the arena, a pedestal with a golden gem materialized right in-front of them. The gem was over-flowing with energy.

"Whoa. That thing looks powerful." Ginger commented as she saw the gem. "So this is the stone that will awaken a weapon right? But where's the weapon that is supposed to come with it?"

"Maybe it's for our main weapons? Or maybe it's for the weapons we were given?" Nathan speculated. "What do you think Clint?" He asked the taller boy next to him. Clint didn't say anything for he just kept his eyes on the gem.

"Either way, there is only one stone and three of us. Does that mean we get to choose who gets it?" Ginger started to look around between the three of them. Neither of the two boys said anything.

"That's right Ginger." Chris was heard answering her. All three of them looked up face the host. "As for weapons, yes, your main weapons are the ones being enchanted. Feel excited?" He said with a grin. All three of them were taken a back with his statement.

"If we enchant our weapons, are we still required to give up our weapon drops?" Nathan asked the host as he revealed his rapier.

"Not at all. You get to keep them since you're technically not gaining a tertiary weapon." The host answered him. "Anything else you guys might want to ask?" None of them spoke up. "Okay. Now, who wants it?"

All three members just looked at the stone without even saying a word to one another. They just kept exchanging glances waiting to see if any one of them would want to take it first. After a while of waiting, Ginger suddenly broke away from the two as she walked up towards the pedestal. The other didn't say anything for they just stayed in place.

"Are the three of you sure that Ginger should be the one to get this reward?" Chris asked all three of them. The lone girl just looked back towards the two and saw no reaction from either of them at all.

"I'd rather wait for something better so she can keep it." Nathan said with a small smile. Clint didn't say anything for he just had gave Chris a small nod.

"I see. Well then Ginger, place your guns on the pedestal." Chris instructed her to do.

Ginger bringing out both her guns placed both of them down on the pedestal just below the golden gem. After waiting a few seconds a pillar of golden light shined down on the items. Moments later the golden light slowly started to die down. With the light now gone, the golden gem was now gone from the pedestal with her guns fully transformed.

"Congratulations Ginger. You've earned Eliza and Tricia, The Twin Phantoms." Chris said to Ginger. Both guns turned from a smooth white colour into a sparkling gold. The barrels were a bit longer a than before and both featured similar wave-like markings edged on both sides printed in black.

"Wait, where are my blades?" Ginger asked as she inspected her weapons. "This isn't an upgrade if you remove them!" She complained. The host just started to laugh at her for a bit.

"You haven't seen everything yet." Chris said with a smile. "Grab a hold of them and you'll see for yourself."

Ginger looking quite skeptical just did what Chris said and picked up both her guns. As Ginger grabbed hold of the first gun the markings started to glow and a shadowy blade soon appeared both above and below the barrel. Both blades looked to be flowing out that looked to trail out like smoke.

"Hmm, impressive if I do say so myself." Ginger commented as she examined the gun. She quickly picked up the other gun and it did the same thing except it only had one long shadowy blade on the under-side of the barrel rather then two shorter ones. "Oh wow. I did not expect this."

"As for abilities you can find them out for yourself. Those weapons are classed as boss weapons anyways so anything can happen." Chris explained to her. "With that out of the way now, I'll be sending you guys back to the real world."

"Wait! What about Phoebe? She's still inside." Ginger pointed out to him.

"Don't worry. I'll send her back as well." Chris says as he pressed a button on his panel. All three of them soon disappeared. "Now that their gone its time to announce second place." He said while smiling at the crowd. "With a total of fourteen points. Laren, and the rest of the Red Dragons, have earned them second place as well as both the Named stone and being safe from elimination for tonight. Red Dragons, please come on out of here to claim your prize."

With their group being called out, each of the remaining red team members all walked out of the gates. They all lined up in the middle of the arena like normal with the only thing different is Alice and Laren standing far apart from each other. The pedestal in-front of them now has a silver gem on top of it.

"So, this is our second place prize huh?" Alice said as she examined the gem. "Not as exciting now that I know my bow will be the one gaining a draw back." She crossed her arms. "I'd rather keep my bow the way it is right now."

"Oh c'mon. Isn't that exciting? Carrying something purposefully faltered is what makes things more interesting!" Kazuo said smiling at Alice.

"Hmph, if that's the case then why don't you upgrade that book of yours since you're just a walking flaw anyways!" Alice snapped back at him a bit angrily.

"Hey, no need for insults now." Kazuo said playfully at her. " Kurutta meinu." He mumbled but kept his smile up.

"Whatever. Tupitsa." Alice said the last part under her breath. She scoffed and looked away from him.

"Will you two just cut it out already!" Laren suddenly scolded the two. All of them were surprised by this; Alice especially. "Nothing good is going to happen if things keep going like this!" Everyone from the team weren't able to say anything. "So please, just stop it already."

"I...*sigh* Fine." Alice crossed her arms. "But my votes will still go to Kazuo." She added. They soon all looked towards Kazuo.

"Okay fine. I swear that I'll stop teasing Alice." Kazuo swore. "For now at least." He grinned.

"Hey! Are the three of you done yet?" Chris called out to them. "I know this makes for interesting drama but we still have a schedule to keep here!"

Laren looked between the two for one last time before turning to face Chris. "We're done!" She answered.

"Good. Now, who wants the item?" The host asked them.

"No thanks." Alice backed out.

"Me neither." Kazuo backed out as well.

"That only leaves you two." Chris gestured to both Janet and Laren. "The four of you won't be leaving unless someone takes it." He crossed his arms

"You should take it, Janet. It will be useless on me since I don't have a weapon to begin with." Laren said to her with a smile.

"No weapon? So all this time you've been playing empty handed?" Alice said to her looking a bit surprised.

"Yeah. Haven't you noticed?" Laren asked with her head tilted a bit. Alice just shook her head. "Well, now you know why I often rely on you guys." She looked towards Janet. "So, how about it?"

"Um, okay." Janet replied looking a bit hesitant. She soon walked towards the pedestal and placed her spear on top of it. Moments later a beam of silver light came down on her weapon. As the light faded her weapon had transformed.

"Congratulations Janet. You've earned Seth, The Hero's Spear" Chris said to her.

Janet raising up her new weapon saw how it much it glistened in the sun's light. The spear head still had the same arrow head design except for a red ruby jewel being inserted in the middle in the same shape as well. Tied by the neck of the spear is a red ribbon that flowed gently in the wind. The spear's entire body went from wooden to silver as well with the bottom end ending with a hoop.

"Awesome, but what the abilities this thing can do?" Janet asked as she marvelled at her own weapon.

"I was just getting to that." Chris waved her off. "What it does is that if you do something heroic or righteous you will gain immense amounts strength, speed, and power. Hence the name. However." He paused for some dramatic. He had an evil looking grin on his face. "Do the opposite and you'll gain the reversed effect."

Everyone from the Red Dragon's just kept quiet as Chris told them the effect. Janet especially felt even more pressured knowing what's going to happen to her.

"With that now out of the way its time for me to send you back all back to he real world." He grinned as he reached for his panel. "Good bye." With a press of a button the Red Dragons all disappeared. "Now. Its time to announce the losers!" He said smiling.

Lucette, sitting behind Chris, had a sad look on her face and had her head down. She soon got up from her seat and exited the booth they were all in.

"With a grand total of nine points!" Chris said a bit exaggerated. "The Yellow Chocobos are our losers for this day's challenge! Please, get on out of here and take the stage!" He called them amount. After a few seconds of waiting, only Blake and Dylan came walking out of the gates and were now standing in the middle of the arena. Lucette joined them a few seconds later.

"Hey. Sad to see that our team lost." Lucette said to them as she got close. She had a sad look on her face as she did.

"Well...it was going to happen eventually." Blake said to her. "Don't worry to much about it for we're going to bounce back from this." He added with a confident look to cheer her up. Lucette brightened up a bit.

"We better hope so." Dylan said as he looked a bit depressed from the loss. "If only I had my sword then things would have been a whole lot better." He crossed his arms.

"We haven't even won a challenge with it." Blake mumbled under his breath.

"What was that?" Dylan raised a brow at him. "Did you say something to me?" He said in an accusing manner. The prankster just shrugged at him.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Blake smiled innocently

"Listen you-" Dylan was about to say something back to him but was cut off when Chris called them out.

"Hey! Will you two pay attention?" Chris said sternly at them. All three members looked towards him. "As you know by now that you are all today's losers. You know what that means, right?" He crossed his arms. All three of them just nodded. "Good. I'll be seeing you all tonight." With a press of a button, everyone in the arena all disappeared leaving only Skell, Estwynn, and Derek.

"Now that its all over. Its time for you two to head back into your own world." Skell said to both of them. With a press of a button a crimson red portal with a yellow outline appeared between him and two ex-contestants. "Anything left to say to the camera before you two go?"

"I have one thing left to say." Estwynn said as he stood up from his. He soon turned to face the camera with a confident look. "Watch out everyone for I'll be back and win it all."

"Thanks for that Estwynn." Skell said to him with a pat on the shoulder. "What about you Derek? Um, Derek?" He turned around to see that he had already left them. "Well um okay then. See you in a couple weeks then if ever." He patted Estwynn's shoulder one last time before heading back into reality.

Back in the real world Skell walked out of his pod looking a bit drowsier then usual. Stretching his arms out he let out a soft yawn before looking around the room. He saw that no one else was in the room with him other than an intern mopping the floor. The room looked a bit dimmer then he initially expected.

"Great. Just great." He said before walking out the door. Bright orange light seeped into the room before the door closed.

* * *

(Chef's food tent. One hour before ceremony)

Inside the large food tent was Leonard who sat on one of the seats with food on his plate. He was shown to be eating a couple burgers with some rice. He continued on eating while having an angry look on his face.

"Hey, is this seat taken?" Someone asked him suddenly. Looking up, Leonard saw Kazuo carrying food with him. He had on his place a couple pieces of sushi of different kinds.

"What do you want?" The former glared at him.

"Oh nothing, just wanted to know what it would be like to be eating with someone from the other team is all." The latter said smiling. He soon sat down on the chair across from him. "You don't mind, right?"

"Yes. I do mind. Now go away." Leonard said sternly with a serious look. Kazuo didn't seem to care for he just ate a piece of sushi. "Didn't you just here what I just said?"

"Yeah. I did." Kazuo said with his mouth full. He soon swallowed it. "Hmm, I wonder..." he trailed off as he looked towards Leonard's food. He suddenly scooped up some food from Leonard's plate and ate it.

"Hey! Are you trying to get yourself killed or something?" Leonard yelled at him looking a bit angry. He was now standing up from his seat.

"That depends. Are you going to kill me?" Kazuo said to him calmly with a grin on his face. Leonard was about to say something back at him but stopped when Chef came rushing out.

"Whats going on out here!" Chef demanded from them. He had a mad look on his face as he glared at both boys. "If you two start fighting in here then I'll make both of you hope that you two get eliminated." He threatened them.

"Ugh. Thats it. I'm out of here." Leonard stormed out. As he was about to exit the the tent he soon came across Dylan.

"Oh, there you are Jag. I need to talk to you about something." Dylan said to him. Leonard just brushed passed him. "Hey! Where are you going?" No response came to him. "Um, whats his deal?"

"I don't know. We were just having a friendly chat is all." Kazuo replied to him.

"Hmph. Friendly my ass." Chef said before walking back into the kitchen.

"So tell me, what is it that you need to talk to him about?" Kazuo asked looking a bit curious.

"Just about the votes later. Its not something that you should be concerned about." Dylan said before leaving the tent.

"Hm, interesting." Kazuo grinned. He soon continued on to finish his food.

(Confessional)

Kazuo: It seems my little experiment saved someone from being voted off tonight. The butterfly effect sure does work in mysterious ways.

(End Confessional)

* * *

(Cabin 6: Paris and Blake's. Thirty minutes before ceremony)

The time jumping ahead showed Blake in his cabin sitting down on a chair next to the table. Sitting on the chair across the table from him was Lucette who just had a sad look on her face as she stared at the table. Both of them just sat there in silence when a knock on the door was heard.

"Let me get that." Blake said as he got up from his seat. Answering the door he saw Paris standing on the other side. "You finally learned how to knock huh?"

"First time for everything." Paris says as she walked inside. "So, have you- why is she here?" Paris asked as she narrowed her eyes at Lucette. The other girl just waved at her awkwardly.

"Um, Because she's my teammate and wanted to talk about the votes." Blake said to her. "Why else would she be here?"

"Uh huh." Paris crossed her arms. "Well, then. I hope you don't mind me being here since its my cabin as well." She says as she walked towards their bunk bed. Paris sat down on the lower bunk. She soon brought out her phone and started typing.

"Okay then." Blake closed the door. He soon sat back on his chair. "Anyways, so do you know who vote for now? I'm still having a hard time deciding who really." Blake begun.

"I don't know. Maybe the ones that didn't make it during the challenge?" Lucette suggested. She looked a bit uncertain with it.

"That does sound like a good idea." Blake agreed. "Since we did lose because of them." He added. "But the question is who though?"

"Um, I'm not really sure either." Lucette looked a bit sad. "I'm really uncertain on who to vote for."

"Well...what about Kali then? That stunt she pulled did cost us the game." Blake suggested to her. "So, how about it?"

"I don't know. Maybe? I guess." Lucette answered looking a bit uncertain. "Having to make hard decision such us this very difficult to make." She frowned.

"*sigh* Fine." Blake said as he got up from his seat. He started to walk towards the door.

"W-wait. Where are you going?"

"I'm just going to take in some fresh air to clear my mind off of things. You can stay here if you want." Blake soon opened the door wide open.

"Let me come with you." Lucette suggested as she got up from her seat.

"No need. I'd rather be alone for this." He said before closing the door.

Letting out a heavy sigh, Lucette just sat back down on her seat. She soon laid her head on the table with her arms underneath.

"Failure stings like a bitch doesn't it." Paris suddenly said to her without even looking up from her phone.

"Of course it does. Having to lose the challenge as well as being forced to get rid of a teammate is a lot to take in." Lucette said to her as she raised her head up slightly. She still had a sad look on her face.

"That's not what I meant." Paris said as she brought down her phone. "You only came here because you wanted to get closer to Blake didn't you." She accused.

"Huh?" Lucette tilted her head at the other girl.

"Play dumb all you want but all I'm going to say is that acting all petty won't work on him." Paris said with a serious look on her face.

"Attention! The ceremony is about to begin. Yellow Chocobos, be here now to send in your votes." Chris was heard announcing through the P.A. system.

"Well, that's your cue." Paris picked up her phone. "Good luck."

* * *

(Elimination grounds: Yellow Chocobos)

Every remaining contestant were shown present in the elimination grounds. They all sat by their teammates as they all waited to see who's going home tonight. Standing by the fire once more were the Skell and Chris with the former holding on to a plate filled with cookies in the shape of Chocobos.

"Time to read the results shall we?" Chris said smiling at the Yellow Chocobos. He pulled out a folded piece of paper. "The first one that is safe for tonight is Dylan" He started it off.

Skell tossed him the cookie and was able to grab it with ease.

"Lucette..."

She tried to catch her cookie but it broke into pieces as it hit her head instead.

"Leonard..."

The cookie landed on Leonard's lap but he just swiped it off.

"Blake..."

The cookie didn't even make it towards him for it landed on the ground.

"Kali. Gelsey. Both you received votes from your team but the one that is safe for tonight is...

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

...Gelsey."

"Yes!" Gelsey started to jump in joy.

"Kali. You have received the most votes from your team thus eliminating you from the game. Any last words?" Chris asked the now former contestant.

"Well...this sucks." She said looking a bit down. "Oh well, more of a reason to work even harder, right?" Kali forced out a smile.

"Come on Kali. Follow me." Skell said as he walked back towards the challenge building. Kali soon followed.

"Okay. That is all. You may all leave now." Chris said to the rest of the contestants. Each contestant soon got up and started heading their separate ways. With the host now all alone once more, the camera slowly zoomed in on him.

"Well, there you have it our dear viewers. The team that has yet to win a challenge had finally lost a team member that may or may not break their game." He soon smiled his trademark smile. "Will the Yellow Chocobos be able to bounce back from this crushing defeat? Will the Blue Nagas show that they are the better team by pulling of a hat trick? Will the Red Dragons finally work together after such a display from Laren? And will Ginger ever fall victim to Blake's 'greatest' prank? Find out next time on Total...Drama...Dungeon Hunters!" Chris held his arms wide open dramatically.

* * *

Votes

Blake: Well, I did say to Lucette that I was going to vote for Kali so yeah. My vote goes to Kali.

Lucette: I really don't want to do this but...my vote goes to Kali just like what Blake said.

Dylan: That's twice that Blake went up against me and I won't allow insubordinations in my team so my vote goes to Blake.

Leonard: That Gelsey girl. She wasn't able to pull her weight last challenge.

Gelsey: My vote goes to Kali. I didn't approach my team about this because I was to embarrassed to talk to them. I just hope it goes my way.

Kali: *sigh* I wanted to talk to my team about the votes but I was to busy doing some other stuff that I didn't realize time flew by. My vote goes to Gelsey.

* * *

Places:

18th: Estwynn Paratus. The Mech and Hero Enthusiast. Role: Fighter

17th: Derek Wright. The Dangerous Outcast. Role: Fighter

16th: Kali Dulal. The Folklore/Mythology Enthusiast. Role: Duellist

* * *

 **Author's note: Kali, just like Derek, I don't have much to say about her honestly. She had a lot going for her but she was just placed in a team where she got out class in many things really. Again, it really is about the world they are in and not about the character itself. Like Derek, in a different setting she would have had potential to be better but sadly everyone is just better then her as a whole. So good luck to her that she may survive and come back for merge.**

 **Also, right now I'm currently out of ideas for challenges for future chapters so if any of you guys have any suggestions then leave them down in reviews or PMs and I might just use them for next chapter and the ones to come. It doesn't have to be a full on challenge though with the bosses and items and stuff, even something like a theme would work and I'll just write around that. Anyone can suggest, even the ones who just read but have no OC can suggest one. Anyways, time for the question.**

 **Question: Now that almost half of the remaining cast has their own unique weapon all with varying abilities; How do you think your OC can stand up against them now, especially the three with boss weapons. As always send the answers through PMs and I'll see you all next time. Bye!**


	9. Wardens and Prisoners

"Last time on Total Drama: Dungeon Hunters." Chris started of the episode while flashing his trademark smile. "Our contestants took on the hearth-pounding Dragon slaying challenge where the goal was simple; kill dragons and earn points." A still image of all the dragons standing in the arena were shown on screen.

"For the duration of last challenge each contestant was forced to fight without their main weapons as well working together with one member from a different team." He explained. A still image of Alice, Dylan, and Nathan fighting the Wyvern Zeph was shown on screen. "After five excruciating and drama filled rounds the final winners of the challenge was determined as well as losers." Chris grinned at the mention of losers.

"Bearing from an unexpected outcome, Phoebe of the Blue Nagas has secured the number one spot for her team as well as an extravagant reward." A replay of Phoebe's doll back-stabbing Kali was shown on screen. A following replay of Ginger twirling her new guns was shown right after. "With their team victory, a loser was determined in the form of the Yellow Chocobos with them paying the price of Kali being eliminated." A replay of Kali walking away with Skell was shown.

As the replay ended, the camera started to slowly zoom in on Chris. "What's going to happen now that all three teams have now lost one member? Will the Blue Nagas be able to perform a hat trick by winning today as well? Will the Red Dragons be able to rise to the top once more now that the teams are equal? Or Will the Yellow Chocobos be able to out run the competition and claim their first Victory? Find out now on Total...Drama...Dungeon Hunters!" Chris spread his arms wide open dramatically.

~(Theme Song)~

(Cabin 2: Ginger and Lucette's)

Inside this small cabin were the two close friends Ginger and Lucette. Both of them were shown to be already awake as well as wearing they're regular outfits. The two were just shown to be sitting silently across from each other on the table in their cabin. The former was shown to be eating her breakfast consisting only a bowl of cereal while the latter was just staring at her intently. The two continued on like this until Ginger suddenly spoke up.

"Are you just going to stay like that until the challenge starts or something?" She asked looking a bit irritated. Her partner didn't say anything. "*sigh* Let me guess, its about Blake isn't it?"

No response came from Lucette as well.

Letting out a deep sigh, Ginger placed her spoon inside her bowl and crossed her arms. Laying back on her chair she soon spoke up. "Listen, I don't like Blake and have no intentions in getting him. You can have him."

"If so then how come you couldn't stop thinking about it last night." Lucette said to her with her eyes still narrowed at Ginger. "Why else do you think I left you alone?"

"Well, um, its because of how annoying he was being all assuming and all." Ginger reasoned. Lucette though, looked like she didn't believe her. "What? I'm telling the truth here!" She got up from her seat.

A sudden knocking was soon heard by both of them. "Hey Ginger. Are you inside?" A familiar voice called out to her.

"Ugh, this isn't going to work." Said another voice much more faintly.

"What the? What does he want?" Ginger said looking a bit nervous. Lucette suddenly sprung up from her seat to answer the door. "Lucette? W-wait!" She called out to her but was to late. Lucette opening the door revealed both Blake and Paris standing on the other side.

"Blake!" Lucette exclaimed happily as she threw herself on to the prankster. She had her arms wrapped around his neck. "What brings you here Blake?" She asked in a cute manner. Paris standing behind them looked unamused.

"He's not here for you so get off." Paris crossed her arms with her eyes narrowed at Lucette.

"Aww, really?" Lucette said to him with a sad look. Blake couldn't respond for he looked a bit flustered. Moments later she was suddenly dragged away by Ginger.

"What do you want?" Ginger said to Blake with her arms crossed.

"Oh, um, no reason really. Do I really need to have a reason to greet the prettiest girl here?" Blake said with a playful grin. Paris just shook her head in disappointment.

"He's been practicing that since last night." Said Paris looking quite unamused with Blake.

"Smooth." Ginger said before closing the door on him.

"See. Told you it wasn't going to work." Paris said before walking off.

"Hey! I'm not about to give up that easily!" Blake declared as he walked off towards the opposite direction.

Inside the cabin once more, Ginger was shown to still be standing by the door with her back pressed against it. She heard the last thing Blake said that got her thinking. "No. Never gonna happen." She said to herself as she raised her head up. Ginger soon saw Lucette standing right across from her with her arms to her waist.

"No intentions huh?" Lucette raised a brow at her.

"Sh-shut up."

(Confessional)

Ginger: *sighs deeply* I need to clear my mind off of things. Maybe testing out my new guns will help.

Blake: Ugh, Paris just had to ruin it. If I'm going to be successful with this ultimate prank I got to make sure all my advances work!

Paris: That Lucette. Her advances won't work on Blake that's for sure. If I were her I would have used a less up front approach. Its not like I care or anything.

(End Confessional)

* * *

(Chef's food tent)

Inside the food tent was Laren eating breakfast on her own. She was shown to be eating eggs and sausages with a glass of orange juice on the side. The lone white haired girl just ate quietly until someone approached her.

"Hey, mind if I join you?" Asked someone standing next to her. Looking up she saw Alice holding a plate of her own food.

"Oh, um, its okay." Laren answered. Alice soon placed her plate down and sat across from her. On her plate was just a few slices of toast with some butter.

Both of them started to eat their food in silence. After a while, Laren's plate was almost finished while Alice's still had a slice left. Seeing that her time is slimming, Alice soon spoke up

"So Laren, uh...are you, um, ready for the next challenge?" Alice tried to start up a conversation.

"Mmhmm." Laren hummed with a nod. She ate her last remaining sausage.

"I see." Alice said as she took a bite of her toast. "So..*swallows*...how are things going with you?"

"Fine. Thanks." Laren answered without even looking up from her plate. She soon scooped up a spoonful of eggs. "How about you?" She asked before eating it.

"I'm...uhh...okay, I guess." Alice answered as well. She took another bite of her toast. Alice didn't ask anything further. After a while, Laren was already done eating her food while Alice still had her last piece in her hand.

"Well, I'm going now." Laren stood up from her seat and started moving towards the exit.

"Laren wait." Alice said the moment Laren passed by causing her to stop. "I'm...sorry okay." She said a bit hesitant without even turning. The camera turning to face her showed she had a sad look on her face.

Laren didn't say anything and started walking off. Hearing that no response came Alice had her head low while continuing to eat her food.

(Confessional)

Alice: That was hard. I really wanted to fix things but...thinking about playing under Kazuo's thumb just doesn't go well with me. Sometimes I wonder what would happen if I have never been placed in the same team as him.

Laren: Alice...I could already tell what she wanted to do since she doesn't look like the type to approach people. Its good to see she wanted to set things straight so I'm sure everything is going to get better from here on out. I'm positive about it. *smiles*

(End Confessional)

* * *

(Virtual world: Maze outskirts)

Inside the virtual world both Ginger and Nathan were both standing right outside the maze on the open field. Both of them were standing far apart from each other while facing one another. The former had her hands ready on her side while the latter had one hand holding on to his katana's handle while still on his back.

"Thanks for agreeing to spar with me." Ginger said from her side of the field. "I really wanted to test out my guns before the challenge but all these forest monsters are to weak for me to practice on." She added.

"No problem." Nathan replied calmly. "I'm ready when you are."

"Okay...3...2...1...Go!" Ginger instantly ran forward with as she pulled out her guns. The shadow blades came to life the moment she did. Nathan didn't do anything for he just stood in place. The moment Ginger got close she slashed the long blade upwards at him but Nathan simply took a step to he side. He soon pulled out his katana and slashed down on her.

"Whoa!" The former managed to jump back away from him. "Man, that was close." She grinned. The latter just nodded as he held his katana in a forward stance. He suddenly dashed towards her at very fast pace. Ginger tried to block the sword slash that soon came after with her blades but the katana passed through the blades like it wasn't even there.

"Ugh..." She groaned out as Nathan shoulder suddenly shoulder bashed her. Ginger started staggering backwards. "What the. How come my blades didn't stop your attack!" Ginger complained as she looked at her guns.

"Those are shadow blades. They weren't meant for defense." Nathan answered her as he held up his sword in a guard stance. "They may be intangible but once you slice with them its like cutting through everything like butter." He explained.

"Oh wow. If that's the case then..." Ginger trailed off as she knew what to do now. She suddenly started running towards Nathan with her guns to her side. As she got close again she did the same attack she did as before. Nathan did the same thing as well but he Ginger had a grin on her face. "Not this time." She twisted her body around for the shorter blades to strike Nathan.

Nathan ducked under the follow-up attack and jumped away soon after. He held up his katana in-front of him once he got his footing again. "Not bad." He said calmly.

"Your not bad as well." Ginger said back to him. Aiming her guns right at him she started firing a barrage of shots. Nathan, reacting fast enough, was able to run away from the shots. Ginger just kept up the pressure on him by firing her guns none stop.

As Ginger kept up her shooting while Nathan kept on dodging, the former managed to clip the latter on his shoulder. Nathan soon fell straight to the ground with a pained expression on his face. Strutting victoriously towards Nathan, she stood close to him with her gun aimed down on him with the tip of her blade pointing on his neck.

"GG." She said to him grinning. Squeezing the trigger, she suddenly took a pause when a clicking sound was heard. Realizing the situation, Nathan immediately swept his legs under Ginger's causing her to fall over. She dropped both her guns the moment she fell down. With Ginger now down, Nathan quickly picked up both her guns and threw them both away.

"Well, It seems like luck was on my side." Nathan said with a small smile. He had his katana next to her throat. "I thought it was over for me in all honesty."

"And it still is." An unfamiliar female voice said to him. Nathan soon heard a gun being pointed right at him. "Drop the sword sweetie and I'll let you surrender." Doing what the person said, Nathan threw his katana to the side and raised his hands up in surrender. "Good. Now turn around so that I can get a look at you better."

Doing again what the girl said he turned around and saw who it was. "Hi there. My name's Eliza." She introduced. She had long brown hair reaching down to her wait. The girl wore a complete cowgirl outfit except she had a shoulder-less top under her vest. Eliza soon noticed Ginger was staring at her with a surprised look. "What? Is there anything on me?"

"No its just...who are you?" Ginger asked with a confused look. She soon stood back up on her feet.

"Wait, didn't that host tell you what we can do?" Eliza asked with a confused look herself. Ginger just shook her head. "Ah, I see. Well, howdy then." She tipped her hat forwards at them with a smile. She soon noticed Nathan still had his hands up. "You can drop them now." She placed her gun to the side. Nathan dropped his arms as well.

"So tell me, Eliza. Are you the only one that can transform or can the other gun as well?" Ginger asked as she gestured at the other gun.

"Oh, right. My bad. Come on out sis." Eliza tossed the other gun in the air. The other gun soon changed into a girl as well.

"Hi! My names Tricia!" The new girl introduced with a big smile and a salute. She was shorter than her sister and wore the same clothing except she had jean shorts on and had a fedora instead of a cowboy hat. Her hair was much shorter as well for it was only chin length. "Nice to meet you two!"

"Wow. If you guys have human forms does that mean the other boss weapons have one as well?" Ginger asked them.

"Sadly, no." Eliza answered. "The ability to change into humans is unique to us two only. We may all have similar abilities but we all have unique on for our own." She explained.

"All boss weapons have similar abilities plus a unique one on their own huh." Nathan said to himself. The others also heard what he said. "Question. Can you revive someone as well?" He asked.

"Sadly. We can't." Tricia answered with a sad look. Her sister just nodded in agreement.

"I see. So that means reviving is only unique to Kazuo then." Nathan thought. "With that said, what can Phoebe's do then?"

"Yeah. Do you two know what Phoebe's scythe, Selena, can do?" Ginger asked the two sisters.

"Sorry but that's a no as well." Eliza answered. "Like I said, we all share similar abilities but the unique ones are unknown to us."

"Okay then." Ginger replied.

"Attention!" Skell's voice was suddenly heard echoing throughout the area. "The next challenge is about to begin. Please be here by then. Thank you." His voice ended. A neon colored portal now appeared right in-front of them.

"Well, that's your cue Ginger. It was a pleasure talking to you." Eliza said with small smile. "We'll be seeing you again later."

"Yeah. Bye!" Tricia waved her them off. Both of them soon reverted back to their original forms.

"This is going to be fun." Ginger grinned as she picked up both her guns. She holstered them both before stepping inside the portal. Nathan followed her in after.

Back in the real world, Ginger and Nathan both got out their pods at the same time. Inside the room with them were just the two hosts Chris and Skell.

"So, did you have fun learning about your new weapon?" Chris asked Ginger with a grin.

"Yeah. How come you never told us that these weapons have unique abilities though?" Ginger asked him. The host just started to chuckle a bit.

"Like I said, you guys would have to discover them on your own." He finally answered.

"Why can't you just tell them straight up what the unique ability is?" Skell questioned his partner's motives. "Wouldn't it make for more drama filled dilemmas once they know how strong it really is?"

"True, but where's the fun in that?" Chris said simply.

The time jumping ahead a few minutes now showed all the remaining contestants were inside. After doing a final head count, Skell gave Chris the thumbs up signaling for him to start.

"Great! Now that everyone is here, its time to reveal today's challenge!" Chris said smiling. Skell quickly getting on to his seat started inputting in commands. Moments later a dark, ruined, run-downed building was shown on screen. The windows of the building were shown to be blocked by rusted metal bars. High walls surround the place with broken down guard towers on each corner.

"This island here is our very own version of the infamous Alcatraz island. Home to all of the worst of the worst." Chris explained to them with a malicious grin. "This is also where the challenge will be held."

"Um, C-Chris...i-is that p-place h-haunted?" Phoebe asked as she was clearly quaking in fear.

"Nah. Its just dark and scary and full of potentially deadly creatures but no ghosts." Chris answered her while grinning. This didn't seem to help at all for Phoebe was still shaking. "Also did I mention this challenge will take place in the dead of night during a thunderstorm?" Chris added in. Suddenly a loud thundering sound came blasting through the speakers.

"Eeek!" Phoebe shrieked as she suddenly hid behind Clint who was standing next to her. Clint just looked a bit surprised for she was holding on to the back of his shirt tight.

"Don't worry Phoebe. We're here to for you." Paris tried to calm the smaller girl down.

"Yeah. We'll just be close-by so there is nothing to worry about." Ginger added in reassuringly.

"Don't bother. You guys will be placed in random holding cells scattered throughout the building." Chris said to them. "So for all you know Phoebe might be placed in a floor all on her own." This made Phoebe even more terrified.

"Hey, isn't that already going a bit to far?" Skell said to Chris. The latter didn't say anything for he was busy laughing. "Hey! Are you even listening to me?"

"Yeah I am. I just don't care." Chris answered. "Anyways, let me explain the goal of this challenge." He soon composed himself. "The goal here is to escape this prison and make it out into the forest. From there you will all have to traverse through it to find a port where only two boats are waiting. All remaining team members have to be on the boat for it to start sailing. The last team to leave the island loses the challenge. Alternatively, if an entire team dies then they automatically become last place" He explained.

"Also, for this challenge we will be having three wardens. One coming from each team. Their goal is to stop one team assigned to them from getting to the boats." Chris added in. "Any questions before we choose who the wardens are?" He asked them

"What if a warden encountered someone from a team they are not assigned to. What happens then?" Dylan asked with his hands raised.

"Yeah. What if they encountered their own team as well. What happens then?" Tristan added in.

"If that happens then its their call. If they want to stop a different team then they can. Just be sure to know that one team is going un-opposed. As for your question Tristan. Obviously they'll let them go. Unless they want their team to lose so be my guest." Chris answered them both. "Anything else?"

No one else asked.

"Good. Now, time to choose the wardens. Since Blue won last time they get to choose first as well as which team they want to stop." Chris said as he faced towards the Blue Nagas. "Well?"

"One of us needs to be a warden huh? Well, at least we know Phoebe can't be one." Ginger said to her team as she looked towards the doll faced girl still clinging on to Clint in fear.

"How about me then? I can traverse quietly and pick them off?" Nathan suggested to them.

"That's a good idea but being able to dodge and hide away from the wardens is what would win us the challenge. I suggest we have someone else for this job." Ginger reasoned with him.

"Don't look at me for that role." Paris said to them. "I can't take them on one-vs-four."

"Okay. How about you Ginger? You could easily pick them off at a distance." Nathan said to Ginger.

"Nah. Not possible. To many dark spots for a rifle and I'll be screwed if I tried shooting at them due to how noisy my guns are." Ginger explained to them. "That means only Clint is left." Everyone looked towards him.

"Yeah. Clint does make for a suitable warden." Paris added in. "His shots are silent, has eyes in the sky, and has his own guard dog."

"You sure about that though? Phoebe looks like she doesn't want to let go off Clint." Ginger pointed out to them. Everyone looked towards Phoebe who was still clinging on to Clint's shirt.

"Well, its his call to make." Paris reminded them. "So, how about it Clint? You up for it?"

Clint, looking down to see the trembling girl behind him, looked back up to match everyone's gaze. After a while of thinking it through, he let out a sigh and just nodded.

"Great! That means Clint here is our warden." Ginger said smiling.

"Is that the final call?" Chris said to them. Everyone, except Phoebe, nodded in affirmation. "Good. Clint, you may choose your targets" he said to him.

Clint, examining each team, thought carefully about who to stop. "Red." He says after making his choice.

"Great! That means the yellow warden will be stopping blue while the red warden will be stopping yellow." Chris said to them. "Now, Red team, its your turn to choose a warden." He said now facing them.

"Hey, can I be the warden?" Kazuo suggested to them grinning.

"Fuck no! We don't want to risk losing to your none sense butterfly bullshit." Alice argued back at him angrily. Kazuo just raised his hands up at her defensively.

"Fine. Fine. No need to get mad at me now." Kazuo said to her. "What about you then Alice? You look like a capable warden." He suggested now.

"I..." Alice trailed of as she looked towards Laren. "I'd rather stay back for now. We need at least one person to make it out of here right? My abilities will make sure that's going to happen." She declared to them.

"Fair enough. That only leaves you two since Laren here doesn't have a weapon." Kazuo said as he looked towards Tristan and Janet. The remaining two just looked at each other.

"I'll do it." Tristan said stepping up. "My armor is just going to weigh me down and I'm to destructive to keep things silent." He reasoned.

"Okay. How about you Janet? Are you okay with this?" Kazuo asked her.

"Yeah. I'm good. My weapon is a bit too chancy to be a warden if I make a miss-step." Janet replied. "Being an escapee is better for me once I get a hold of what my weapon does."

"Okay." Kazuo said as he looked towards Chris. "Hey! We're done here!" He called the host.

"That was quick. Who's the warden then?" Chris asked them.

"I am." Tristan stepped up.

"Good. That only leaves yellow team." The host now looked towards the last team. "Its now your turn to choose a warden. I'll give you guys enough time to think this through now that each team has a suitable warden." He said to them

"No need." Dylan suddenly stepped up. "I'll be the warden." He said. Everyone from the yellow team was surprised by this.

"Hey! You can't just declare yourself as the warden without even saying anything to us!" Blake objected. "We need to make a team decision on this if we want-" He was suddenly cut-off when Dylan smacked him aside with the back of his hand. He soon fell to the ground.

"Blake!" Lucette quickly kneeled down next to him looking very worried. She helped support Blake.

"Hey! What was that for?!" The prankster yelled at him with one hand on his cheek. He soon saw Dylan glaring down at him.

"Listen." Dylan suddenly raised him up by his shirt collar. Lucette tried to stop him but backed off when Dylan shot her a menacing glare. He soon returned back to Blake. "I've had enough of you constantly going up against me. You may think you're such a hotshot but I'm your only hope to getting into merge. So if you want to win then I suggest you just back down and do as I say." He threw Blake back on the ground. "Got that?"

Blake didn't give a response and just kept his glare at him.

"Hmph. How about you? You got anything to add?" Dylan said while staring straight Leonard. The latter just scoffed and looked away to the side.

With an annoyed look, Dylan turned back around to face the two hosts. Both of them were staring at him with mixed expressions. Looking around now he also noticed everyone staring straight at him, looking at him with disapproving looks. Silence filled the room they were all in for a moment before Chris spoke up.

"Okay...that was unexpected." Chris said to them. "Anyways, Wardens, please step forward." He instructed them. Tristan and Dylan both stepped up to stand in-front of everybody except for Clint who wasn't able to.

"Hey Phoebe, you need to let go now. Clint needs to move on up." Paris said to her in a calm tone. Phoebe, hearing Paris's words, just looked up from anxious state to see that everyone one was looking her way. Realizing now the situation she was in she quickly let go of Clint with her face all red.

"O-oh, um, I-I'm sorry." Phoebe meekly apologized while looking flustered. She just had her head down out of embarrassment. Moments later she suddenly felt a hand rubbing the top of her head. Looking up to see who it was she saw that Clint was the one doing it while looking at her with a straight look. After a few seconds he stopped and walked on up to stand next to the other wardens.

"That was smooth of you." Dylan said to him with his arms crossed. Clint just shot him a piercing glare.

"Okay. Now that the three Wardens are here in the front. Everyone else, you may all get in your pods now." Chris told the remaining contestants. Each one soon got into their pods and fell asleep like normal. "Now, for the three of you. You all will be sent to a different building once you get inside your pods. Once there, you'll be shown the entire map of the island and the blue prints to the prison. You'll all be given one hour to study them. Understand?" The host explained to them.

The three wardens all just nodded in response.

"Good. Any final questions before you guys get sent in?" He asked them.

"Yeah. What if we get killed? What happens to us then?" Tristan asked him.

"Oh, you'll be spawned back in the building you started off in." Chrid answered.

"Are we allowed to explore outside once we get spawned in?" Dylan asked this time.

"Nope. No warden is allowed to explore until the time is up." The host answered as well. "Anything else?"

"Nah. I'm good." Said Dylan in response.

"Me too." Tristan chimed in.

Clint just shook his head at the host in response.

"Good. Now get in there. Time is ticking." Chris said while grinning. The three of them all quickly scrambled into there pods. Moments later, the monitor came to life revealing the three of them in a large office building.

The two hosts were now left alone in the room.

"Hey Chris, how come you didn't stop Dylan and Blake from fighting this time around?" Skell asked. The main host was heard lightly chuckling at him.

"Oh Skell. You may be smart but still don't know how the way things work around here." Chris said to him while grinning. "Now get in your pod. Those three might end up killing each other before the challenge even begins." He gestured towards the monitor. The monitor showed that the three of them were already arguing.

Letting out a heavy sigh, Skell got up from his seat and started walking off. He was soon shown getting into his pod and quickly falling asleep. Moments later he was shown in the same area as the three wardens breaking apart there little argument. With Chris now all alone, the camera slowly zoomed in on him.

"Well, there you have it our dear viewers. The challenge has now begun with everyone in their places." He took a slight pause. "How will the sweet ol'Phoebe fair now that she's all alone? Will our Wardens be successful in stopping our prisoners from escaping? How will the Yellow Chocobos act now knowing that they are under the dictatorship of Dylan? Lets head on in, shall we?" He smiled at the camera.

The scene now transitioned to inside the Warden's office. The inside looked to be as ruined and abandoned as the rest of the island while being lit up by an old flickering bulb. The floors were all dusty, the walls cracked and littered with cobwebs, and, dusty and broken tables and chairs filled the area. A large and slightly torn island map was shown to be stuck in the middle of office with one rusted cabinet on each side.

"Hmm, so this is the only safe route from the prison to the docks without crossing through the forest." Tristan pondered as he was shown to be standing in-font of the map. "And its to dark to even use one of the nearby guard towers." He added as he looked outside a nearby window to see pitch darkness.

"Got any ideas how to go about this, Clint?" He asked as he looked towards Clint searching through one of the drawers. He soon noticed Clint holding on to a couple old folders. "Hey, what is that?" Tristan asked.

"Documents about our teammates." Clint answered. Looking quite intrigued, the mechanic approached him.

"Let me see some of that." He says as he took a folder from the drawer. The folder he pulled out had the name 'Kazuo' written on the side. "Interesting." He said after reading through what was written. "It says here a few basic info about them as well as their cell numbers." He pointed out. Reading through it more he found a section called 'Felonies' written in a separate sheet of paper.

"Hold on. These aren't crimes. These are the things he did during the challenges." Tristan said after reading through it. "So these are the things he did so far huh?" He said to himself as he closed the folder. "Well, at least we know what prison cell they are all in. All we need to know now is what floor they are all held in."

Clint just nodded his head with a hum in response.

The camera moving around showed Dylan standing by a long wooden table. A bunch of floor maps and blue-prints were scattered around. Dylan was shown to be pre-occupied by a map labeled 'floor 4'. He had a disgruntled look for he couldn't make out the things written on the map.

"Ah! This is hopeless!" He said giving up. "I can't make out what some of these larger rooms are supposed to be." He complained.

"Hey, at least you know where to go. Unlike our contestants who are going in blind." Skell reminded him. He was shown to be sitting behind a large desk in the middle of the office. "Now quit your whining. You still have about forty-five minutes left." He says as he read the time on his panel.

"Fine." Dylan answered. He soon pulled out a chair from under the table and sat down. "Might as well keep myself occupied." He placed the rifle case down on the table. He brought out the rifle, Latona, and started messing around with it.

"I thought you were supposed to give that to your team?" The co-host asked him.

"Yeah but given how things are I'd rather hold on to it for now." The gamer replied as he continued on examining his rifle.

"Hey Skell, can you take a look at this real quick?" Tristan was heard calling him.

"Yeah? What is it?" Skell asked as he turned to face towards him.

"What's in that building over there? The one just passed the prison." The mechanic pointed out to him. Skell looking towards the map saw what building Tristan was pointing towards.

"That? That's just a warehouse. Nothing real important is stashed away in there. Well, as far as I know. Chris adds in stuff without me knowing sometimes." Skell answered him.

"Really now? That's interesting to know." Tristan said looking quite intrigued by this.

"Don't get too side tracked now. Or otherwise the Yellow Chocobos might fo un-opposed." Skell said to him.

The four of them just went about doing the same thing for the entire remaining time. The scene leaving the office now transitioned inside the prison building. The place now showed on camera was a ruined and abandoned hall with multiple many empty prison cells lining each side with some containing the dead remains of prisoners. The place was just lit by flickering hall lights with most of them already broken. Cracks of thunder was heard echoing throughout the hall.

Treading slowly through the abandoned hallway is grotesque looking watchman wearing a tattered old uniform while holding up a dusty old lantern with a faint flame. His body was rotting with some bone being exposed. The watchman just slowly walked passed all the cells.

One of the cells the watchman passed through contained Lucette inside. She just sat on the bed inside in silence. Her staff was shown to be leaning on the prison bars while her bow was on her lap. A worried look was shown on her face for she was thinking heavily about what just happened.

Following the watchman further down the hall showed that Leonard was in the same floor with her. He was just standing up with his arms crossed while leaning against the back wall. He had his eyes closed and his head down for he was irritated about his situation.

"How long are we supposed to be kept in here?" He said irritably to himself.

"I don't know. It must be part of the challenge or something to find a way escape." Lucette answered him.

"If so then we don't have the right tools to get out of here given that there are guards." Leonard pointed out. Moments later the watchman passed by his cell once more, not giving him thought.

"Well, we would have to rely on our teammates then to get us out of here." Lucette said to him. The watchman passed by her cell once more.

"*sigh* What a drag."

The camera moving a couple floors up showed Alice sitting still on her bed. She was just staring idly out of the window of her cell. Flashes of lightning lit up her dark room for the floor she was held in barely has any light. She just had her bow strapped to her back still.

Across from her was Paris. She was just laying down on her bed staring straight up at the ceiling. Her arms under her head with one leg over the other. Her rapier was just standing by the foot of her bed still in it's sheath.

A couple prison cells further from theirs was Gelsey. She was in the same row as Alice but her's was more lit up for the hallway light was shining from outside. Gelsey was just sitting on top of her bed with her legs crossed and with her staff on her lap. Heavy thoughts were filling her head for she looked a bit down.

The three of them didn't bother to interact with each other for they were busy with their own little agendas. The scene now shifted to different floor once more. Here, another watchman was shown patrolling the dark halls with his own old flickering lamp. While moving passed all the empty cells, he soon passed by Ginger who was just sitting idly on her bed. The moment the watchman walked farther away from her cell she soon sprung up and held on to the cell's bars.

"Go. Now!" Ginger muttered softly as she slid one of her guns through the metal bars. The gun soon changed into Eliza.

"You really sure about this?" Eliza asked looking quite concerned.

"Yes. Now hurry and go find Phoebe. Before that guard comes back." Ginger urged her to go.

"Don't worry sis. I can handle things just fine!" Tricia was now shown standing behind Ginger. She gave her sister a thumbs.

"Okay. I trust you on this." Eliza replied with a serious look. Light footsteps were heard coming their way prompting Eliza to now go. She soon disappeared into the darkness and was now out of sight.

"So tell me Ginger. Why are you so concerned about Phoebe?" Tricia asked. "I mean she does hold a unique and powerful weapon by her side."

"I know. I'm just worried that Phoebe might not make it out of here given this setting." Ginger replied with a worried tone. A couple cracks of thunder was soon heard out into the distance. "I just hope that nothing bad has happened to her yet."

"Don't worry about it. I'm sure sis will find her." Tricia said reassuringly.

"I hope so."

The camera following Eliza now showed that she was running quickly through the dark hall. She soon reached the end of the long hallway leading down to two separate ways. Without any hesitations she quickly made a right turn. As she ran passed the path leading to the left, the camera started to slowly zoom in on the darkness. Dark-blue eyes soon popped open staring briefly at the girl before suddenly vanishing.

* * *

The scene now returned back to the warden's office. Tristan, Dylan, and Clint were shown standing in-front of the central desk with Skell standing behind it. A small holographic monitor was shown floating just above the desk. The remaining time was shown on the monitor with the seconds quickly counting down.

"3...2...1 aaaand time." Skell counted down the time. He soon pressed a button on his panel and soon the monitor now showed multiple live camera footage of a few rooms simultaneously. "Wardens. Happy hunting." He said to them grinning. The doors locking them inside the office building soon flew open on its own.

The three wardens all quickly walked out of the office leaving Skell alone. "Now, time to enjoy the show." He said as he sat back down on his chair.

* * *

The camera changing scenes once more showed a different floor of the prison. Here, Blake was shown running quickly through the dark hallway on his own. He was grasping on to his bow tightly as he made his way through the dark hall.

"Man, this place is huge. How far up am I?" He said to himself. Moments later he suddenly heard loud crashing sound up ahead. Slowing down now, he stopped to take a quick peek around the corner to see what it was.

"Wow, isn't this high?" Said Kazuo as Blake saw him around the corner. A large hole was shown blown through the wall. Kazuo's spell book was shown glowing in his hands as well. "Hmm, I wonder if a fall from this height would kill me?"

Blake, ignoring Kazuo, just quietly took a couple steps back. As he did he suddenly felt something standing behind him. He soon heard a horrid wheezing and felt a cold breath down his neck. Turning around he now saw rotting corpse standing behind him while wearing an old inmate's outfit with holes sticking out.

"Ah shit." Blake muttered to himself as quickly drew out his bow.

"Nah, I'll be voted off surely if I do that." Kazuo said grinning as the scene changed perspectives. Moments later Blake was shown being thrown hard against the wall beside him. "Oh, hey Blake. Didn't know you were in this floor as well." He said to him. The zombie prisoner slowly came into view. "Wow. Zombie prisoners. A bit cliché don't you think?"

"Ugh...I don't have time for your random bullshit Kazuo!" Blake said back at him. Blake suddenly rolled to his side when the zombie started charging at him. The zombie hit the wall hard instead. "Take this!" He yelled at the zombie as he fired a holy arrow it. The zombie soon burst into grey flames before collapsing.

"Impressive." Kazuo praised Blake's performance as he stared at the burning zombie. "Well, I guess this explains why they opted to have corpses in some prison cells." He soon looked up to see Blake aiming a different arrow at him.

"Drop your weapons Kazuo. I don't want to get into fights right now for I just plan on escaping." Blake said to him looking very serious.

"Okay. Okay." Kazuo raised his hands up with his spell book being held up by his right hand.

"I said drop it!" Blake demanded.

With a grin, Kazuo dropped the book in his hand. As it was falling the pages opened up revealing the texts to Kazuo. With a sudden flick of his fingers frozen needles suddenly appeared floating all around Blake. All them soon went flying towards him. As the needles hit it was revealed that the Blake in-front of him was just an illusion. The real Blake was shown running fast away down the hall.

"Smart of him to use an illusion to stall me here rather than fight. He sure got me their." Kazuo grinned as he watched Blake disappear into the darkness. "Oh well, time to find my way out of here." He turned to walk towards the opposite direction.

Changing to different part of the prison now showed a rather large and spacious room. The room was revealed to be a prison library for tall dusty shelves lined the area with piles of old rotting books on the floor. Shown inside the library was Nathan who was trying to find an exit from there.

"There is bound to be an emergency exit or a fire escape in here." He thought to himself as quietly searched through the isles. As he continued to search for a potential exit inside the library, he suddenly heard the doors leading inside open. Acting fast he quickly his behind one of the bookshelves.

"Hmph. So this is one of the large rooms that I can't figure out. Its just a stinking' library." Dylan's voice was heard. His foot-steps was soon heard walking deeper inside.

"Dammit. Need to find a way out of here." Nathan just thought to himself. He quietly moved away from the bookshelf he was hiding on.

Dylan suddenly stopped moving for he suddenly felt someone else was in the room with him. He quickly drew out his sword. "I know you're hear. Don't try to hide or run away from me now. Its pointless at this point." Dylan called out.

Nathan, ignoring him, just kept on trying his best to sneak his way out of the library. He kept moving at a slow pace until he eventually came across a single closed door with broken sign right above it. Figuring out what it could be, he quickly turned to the isle leading to the door. He soon stopped when Dylan suddenly walked passed between him and the door.

"Is this what you are looking for? A fire exit?" Dylan called out. His back was turned towards Nathan. "If you think I'll let you through here then you're guessing wrong!"

With no other options left, Nathan drew out his katana and held it tightly in-front of him. He started to slowly move in on Dylan for his back was still turned. Nathan now close to him, he raised his katana high up above his head and slashed down on him. Just before the blade could hit Dylan, he suddenly vanished from in-front of him.

"Hah! You really think that would work?" Dylan's voice was suddenly heard behind him. Nathan tried to turn around but was quickly kicked down from behind.

"Oof." Nathan let out as he hit the door. His katana just started to clang out for a bit for he dropped it in the process.

"You know, I could have attacked you way earlier since I already knew where you were from the start. I just decided not to so that I could see that surprised look on your face." Dylan pointed out to him. A large grin was all over his face.

Nathan tried to get up and reach for his sword but stopped when Dylan stomped down on his chest. Air forcefully escaped through his lungs for the force of it was enough to leave him breathless. His chest was aching in pain that was to much for Nathan to bare.

"Nothing personal, Nathan. I'm just doing my job." Dylan said to him as he raised his sword right above him. Nathan was doing everything he could to get Dylan off of him but was no use. Moments later, Dylan finally finished him off and soon Nathan's body flickered out of the virtual world.

"That's one down. Only three left to go."

* * *

The scene changing once more showed Ginger running down a hallway with many prison cells on a different floor. Every time she ran passed a prison cell, rotting and deformed arms attempted to reach out and try to grab her but she manages to avoid them.

Trailing right behind her was Tricia. She didn't bother to attempt on avoiding the arms reaching out at her for she was just cutting them down with the long shadow blade forming from her right arm.

"Wait up Ginger! You're going to fast!" The latter called out to her for she looked a bit exhausted.

"I'm sorry but we can't be wasting time. Just turn back into a gun and I'll carry you." Ginger said back to her.

"Fine. I just hope you're a good catch though." Tricia answered back.

"What?" Ginger looked back at her a bit confused.

Without saying anything else Tricia started to sprint a bit faster. Seconds later she suddenly leaped forward and did a front flip. She turned back into her gun form in the process. Ginger acting fast was able to catch her in mid air. The long shadow blade soon formed the moment she caught it.

As she continued on to run down the hall, she soon saw a staircase up ahead. Slowing down her pace for a bit she immediately ran down the staircase. As she reached the next floor lower she tried to run down it even more but the moment she turned she suddenly crashed into somebody. Both of them fell straight down to the ground.

"Ugh...Watch it!" A male voice said sternly towards her. Ginger soon heard light footsteps heading there way.

"Jag! Are you okay?" Said a female voice in a worried tone.

Ginger able to regain and compose herself just raised her body up a bit to see who it was. Her vision steadying a bit she soon saw Leonard and Lucette standing across from her. Sitting up straight now, she soon called for the latter.

"L-Lucette?" She called out a bit weakly. Lucette hearing her looked towards her and soon recognized who it was.

"Oh my! Ginger!" Lucette ran up to her. "What are you doing here?" She asked as she helped her friend up.

"Trying to escape, obviously." Ginger stated plainly to her.

"Why don't you come along with us then?" Lucette suggested to her.

"No can do Lucette. She may be your friend but she's also the enemy." Leonard interjected. He had a seriously on his face.

"Jag, come on. Don't be like that. The goal is to escape, we don't have to fight." Lucette argued back at him.

"I'm not taking any chances Lucette. For all we know we could be the only ones left on our team on this damn island." Leonard shot back at her.

"Don't say that!" Lucette said back to him in Denial. "I'm sure someone is still alive."

"Hmph. Whatever. If you want to go with her then go. I'm wasting my time arguing with you here." Leonard soon started walking down the stairs. He suddenly stopped when he took a few steps down. "Just know that my vote will be heading your way if we lose this." He continued to walk on down.

"Jag. Wait!" Lucette reached out to him. "Ginger! Say something!" She urged her friend as she looked back towards her.

Ginger, with heavy thoughts, just head her had down. She let out a deep sigh moments later. Ginger ended up pointing her gun at her blonde haired friend.

"Ginger?" Lucette took a step back. She looked confused about her friend's sudden decision.

"I'm sorry Lucette. I hate to say this but Leonard is right. You should go on ahead and follow him. I can find my own way out of here." Ginger said to her with a heavy look on her face. "Now go. Before I change my mind and pull the trigger. This is still a competition after all." She reminded.

"But I..." Lucette trailed off as she looked down the staircase. Leonard's footsteps were getting fainter and fainter as each second passed by. "But-" She was suddenly cut off when Ginger shot passed her.

"Go!" Ginger commanded.

Lucette, not wanting to believe what's happening, just took a couple steps back and faced her friend once more. She noticed that it was a hard decision for her to make as well. With no real options left, she quickly ran down the set of stairs in attempt to catch up with her teammate.

"Fine. If that's how its going to be then." Lucette said before taking off. Ginger was now alone once more in the dark hallway. She dropped her arm the moment Lucette left.

"Why did you let her go? That was a prime moment for you to take her out and possibly win this challenge." Tricia said to her while still being in her gun form.

"That's because she's my friend. I can't bring myself to backstab her just like that." Ginger answered. A sad look was casted upon her face. "Now come on, we need to find another way out of here." She soon ran passed the set of stairs.

* * *

The scene shifting to a different floor of the prison showed Janet and Laren together running through a large spacious hall. It was clear that they were on the bottom floor for no prison cells lined each walls for it was just door leading to offices instead. The floors were tiled with the most part of it being cracked.

"How far does this hallway go? The place is to dark to even tell if we're making any progress or not." Janet complained a bit.

"I don't know! Its too dark for me to tell as well." Laren answered her. She was just trailing slightly behind.

"Just keep looking down these halls then! The exit has to somewhere around here." Janet said back to her.

As the two continue on to run down the large hall; looking down every hallway they passed. They soon saw another large and spacious hallway up ahead. As they reach it, they soon noticed they were in the center of the prison for it was a large spacious clearing in a circular fashion.

"Down there!" Laren pointed down towards the end of one the halls. Janet looking towards where she was pointing at saw a set of4 doors just ahead of them.

"Nice work, Laren!" Janet praised her. "Now come on, let's get out of here. We still need to find the docks." She soon started running towards the doors. Laren just followed suit.

As the two Red Dragon members reached their exit, a large silver wolf suddenly appeared in-front of them blocking them from the exit. The two of them just stopped in place as the wolf stared them down while growling at them with its sharp teeth exposed. They started to slowly move on back as the wolf slowly moved in on them.

"Easy now. No need to do anything reckless." Janet said calmly to the wolf. She had her spear, Seth, pointed right at it while her other arm was blocking Laren while they slowly move back. Silver just continued on growling at them as they did.

As they slowly moved on back with their exit getting farther and farther, they soon found themselves back in the center. "Stop right there." A voice commanded them from the hall right behind them. Janet taking a quick glance back saw Clint aiming his arrows right at them. With no other options left, she stopped both of the from moving any farther. The wolf stopped as well as they did.

"Laren, I need you to run. Go find another way out of here while I hold them off." She whispered to her teammate.

"But...what about you? How will you make it out of here?" Laren asked looking very worried for Janet's sake.

"Laren, listen. The goal of the challenge is for at least one of us to make it out of here. You running away now will ensure that." Janet explained to her in order to persuade her to go. "Now go! Before they decide to make the first move. Don't worry about me though, I can handle myself just fine." She said reassuringly.

"Okay. I...wish you the best of luck then." Laren said before she started running down a different hallway. The wolf tried to pursue her but was thrown aside by Janet's gravity pull.

"Hmph. How noble of you." Clint said to her calmly. He still had his arrows aimed right at her.

"Well, we got to be at some point." Janet said to him all the while grinning. The gem on her weapon started to glow out a bit.

* * *

The scene returning back to where Blake was revealed he was trying to force metallic door down open. A rusted metal sign was shown hanging right above the doorway with barely readable words written across it.

"Come on, this has to work." He said to himself as he tried to pry the door open with his sword. Burn marks were shown all over the door showing that he tried to burn it down at some point. "Ah! Dammit!" He yelled as he dropped his sword and started shaking his hands.

He started to kick the door in frustration. After a few good kicks he soon gave up and leaned against it. He soon slid down and sat on the floor. He looked a bit exhausted after all that he did.

"Man, that was a waste of time." Blake said to himself while looking down. "I wonder if anyone has made it out of here yet?" He wondered.

After a few minutes had passed of him just silently resting there, he soon heard some screaming from a distance. Acting fast he immediately hid behind a corner leading down a hallway where he heard the cries from.

"Run Phoebe!" A female voice yelled down the hall. Blake peaking around the corner saw Eliza sprinting down the hall while dragging Phoebe along with her. Behind them was Phoebe's doll Savior fighting what looks to be a rather large zombie guard dog.

The doll attempted to swing at it with its scythe but was quickly brought down when the dog pounced on him. The back part of his upper torso and head got smashed into pieces under the pressure of the impact. Savior was no longer able to move while magic essence was escaping from its body. The guard dog started to sprint after the two girls the moment it brought down the doll.

"Aaah! It's gaining on us!" Phoebe screamed as she turned around to see the guard dog coming in fast. The guard dog was heard snarling at them as it gave chase.

With the guard dog getting closer and closer with them not having enough time to make it to the end of the hall Eliza knew she had to act fast. Taking a quick glance at Phoebe back up ahead, she knew what she needed to do.

"I'm sorry for this Phoebe." Eliza said to her with a sad tone. Without much warning she pulled on Phoebe's arm hard in order to throw her far up ahead.

"Waaaah!" The doll faced girl screamed as she tumbled down the hallway until she managed to reach the end where Blake was.

"Phoebe!?" The prankster's eyes widened when he saw Phoebe now with him.

With Phoebe now out of harms way she stopped and quickly turned around with her arms spread wide open. Two short shadow blades formed around each of her hands.

"Come at me!" Eliza provoked the beast as she stood her ground. The guard dog falling for it lunged at her with it's sharp teeth exposed in which Eliza swiftly did a cross slash at it.

As the two went passed each other the guard dog skidded to a stop as it landed. It slowly turned to face Eliza, revealing a deep cross cut wound on its chest but it didn't phase it at all. Eliza just buckled over on to one knee for a deep claw wound was visible on the side of her body. She tried to stop the blood from pouring out but some still managed to drip through.

"Ugh..." She groaned out in pain as she looked behind her. Eliza soon noticed the guard dog slowly creeping up on her. Looking passed it she saw Phoebe being helped up by Blake. "You! Take Phoebe and go!" Eliza pleaded with Blake, unknown to her he was from a different team.

Blake, being placed on the spot, just glanced towards Phoebe and back to her. Seeing her desperate look along with Phoebe's shaken up condition. He did what Eliza wanted and took Phoebe by her arms. He soon ran off with her.

"Come on, Phoebe. We need to go. Now!" Blake urged her before they took off running. With the two of them now gone only the injured Eliza was left alone with the guard dog.

"Well, its a job well done I have to say." She chuckled weakly. She closed her eyes shut as she heard the beast lunge at her with a snarl but nothing happened. Opening her eyes she saw Savior casting a shield protecting her. Large amounts of pale-silver magic essence was flowing out him. His entire body was surrounded in a similar aura as well.

"So that's your ability huh?" Eliza said weakly. A small grin was shown across her face.

The camera catching up with Blake and Phoebe now showed them to still be running through the halls in the same floor. Both of them soon reached a set of stairs and they followed it down. Once they were a couple floors down they stopped for a bit and rested for they both looked quite exhausted.

"*pant* Lets *pant* stop here for now...*pant*" Blake said in-between breaths. He soon sat down the stairs with Phoebe doing the same. "Are you alright though?"

"Y-yeah." Phoebe replied a bit meekly. She flinched a bit as she heard some thunder cracking from outside.

"So tell me, who was that you were with?" The prankster asked about who Eliza was.

"I-I don't know. She just t-told me she's w-with Ginger." Phoebe replied stammering a bit.

"How so? This is the first time I've seen her?" Blake looked quite skeptical about Eliza now. "How are you sure it isn't a trick set up by Chris?"

Phoebe wasn't able to answer him for she was frightened at the thought. Blake, seeing how Phoebe looked, just let out a deep sigh as he slumped down a bit.

"Come on. Lets get you out of here." He said to her as he got back up. "We just need to-" He suddenly got caught off when got stricken down from out of nowhere.

"Blake!" Phoebe screamed as she saw Blake's pained look while bleeding on the ground. His avatar flickered out moments later due to the blood loss.

"That's for helping out the enemy team." Dylan's voice was suddenly heard. The doll faced girl looking behind her saw Dylan standing over them from the top of the staircase. "You should really know better you know?" He looked down towards Phoebe. "Now, as for you."

Phoebe, scared for her life, started to move back a bit but slipped and tumbled down instead. Dylan walking down the staircase slowly was just laughing at her maniacally. His long sword was ignited with dark magic as held it to his side.

"Oh well, time to end you." The latter said deviously. Raising up his sword he was about to strike Phoebe down when another blade blocked his attack. "What!?" He looked to his side to see Paris standing there.

"Sorry to ruin your moment, dear." She said smiling. With a quick flick of her rapier she was able to push Dylan off. "Surprised to see me?" She immediately followed up her attack with a quick jab to his right shoulder.

"Ah!" Dylan winced in pain as he moved back. "But how!? How was I not able to detect you?"

"Oh, because of this little thing." Paris revealed her viper ring on her hand. The ruby eyes were glowing a bit. "May not be my style but its effective. Now, en garde." She assumed an offensive stance.

The gamer looking quite irritated with the dancer right in-front of him just swung his sword wildly at her. Paris was able to follow the sword wing with some graceful foot work. She quickly moved behind him and took another jab at the same shoulder.

"Argh.." Dylan gritted his teeth in pain. Fighting off the pain he just dropped his hold on to his sword with his right hand a just swung it around using his left.

"I don't think so." Paris was able to easily block the attack. With Dylan now fully exposed she kicked him hard on his gut causing him to get pushed back. Paris then followed it up with another quick and precise jab to his left shoulder this time. This caused Dylan to drop his sword.

"Why you..." Dylan trailed off in anger as he tried to hold on the blade of the rapier.

"Good night." She smiled at him. Quickly pulling out her rapier from his shoulder she immediately jabbed it through the gaps on Dylan's face mask. Blood started to drip off of her rapier before Dylan's avatar flickered out.

With the threat now gone she flicked her rapier right in-front of her to clear the blood dripping from the blade. She quickly returned it back to her sheath before returning back to Phoebe's side. Paris soon kneeled down next to her.

"Are you okay?" She asked the scared little girl with a worried tone. Phoebe couldn't reply for she was still shaken from the whole ordeal. Tears were still streaming down from her eyes. "There. There. Everything's going to be alright." Paris comforted her as she rubbed the top of Phoebe's head.

"H-h-he j-just k-killed him." The doll faced girl said to her while sniveling. "W-why is h-he so m-mean to his t-team."

"Shhh. Don't worry to much about it Phoebe. I'm sure his team will deal with him once they lose." Paris said to her reassuringly. "Now stand up. We need to get going before its to late." She said as she stood up. "Here, let me help you." She grabbed on to Phoebe's hand and gently stood her up. Both of them started to walk down the staircase.

(Confessional)

Dylan: Dammit! I can't believe I just lost a duel to someone as weak as her! I'm so going to hunt them down for that.

Paris: Good thing I showed up just in time to save Phoebe. Any later then...ah, I don't want to think about it. But I wonder though, where was that doll of hers during all this?

Blake: Grrr. I've had it with him! That was the last straw. He clearly went out of line there. I mean, who does that? Just because I helped out someone from a different team, Phoebe to be exact, he instantly kills me for it. That's it, next time we lose he's out. I just hope I have the votes to pull it off though.

(End Confessional)

* * *

The scene shifted to show a different part of the prison once more where Lucette and Leonard was. Both of them were still climbing down the same set of stairs as seen before.

"Dammit!" The latter cursed. The stairs leading further down shown to have been completely collapsed. They were too high up for the jump down to be considered safe. "Come on, lets see if we can find another way down from here."

"Okay." The former said to him as she climbed back up the stairs first. As the two made it back up to the floor above them, Leonard took the initiative to see if the coast was clear before heading on in.

"Come on. The place is clear." Leonard whispered as he motioned for Lucette to move.

"Are you sure?" Lucette questioned looking quite nervous.

"Yes I'm sure! Now hurry up before- Wait. What was that?" Leonard suddenly heard foot steps heading their way. Acting fast he suddenly hid himself behind the corner to make sure he was out of sight. Lucette did the same and stuck close.

"Who do you think it is?"

"Shut it! I'm trying to listen!"

As the foot steps got closer and closer it suddenly stopped as if it knew something wasn't right. Both of them started to feel the pressure building up on them if they don't act fast. Moments later they heard the foot steps once again only this time it sounded as if it was getting farther and farther. This earned a sudden sigh of relief.

"Phew. For a second there I thought-" Leonard was suddenly cut off when an explosive shot ripped through the wall they were hiding on. The blast was strong enough to send Leonard falling over the railings and landing on the floor below.

"Leonard!" Lucette cried out as she saw his avatar flicker out. "Ah!" Another shot was sent flying right in-front of her completely destroying the stairs leading up.

"Come on out! There's no use in hiding!" Tristan's voice was heard calling out to her. Lucette didn't move at all. "Not going to reveal yourself huh? Fine then. Makes things a whole lot easier." He started to slowly make his way towards her.

Lucette now with no other options left made a sudden break for it as she started to run down the hall. "Got you!" Tristan fired another cannon shot but it missed and hit the wall passed her. "Tsk." He let out as he gave chase.

"Ah!" Lucette stumbled a bit as another cannon shot blew up the wall beside her. A high drop was shown as the dust cleared. The lone girl just brushed it off and continued on to run.

"Get back here!" The mechanic yelled at her as he threw his wrench at her. The attack managed to clip her on the shoulder as it bounced back. Lucette winced in pain but managed to hold on and keep on running.

As the two continue on to run, Lucette was slowly out running Tristan for his armor was weighing him down. With the end off the hall getting closer and closer the former knew she needed to make the turn in order to get away. The latter realized this as well.

"I won't let you get away that easily!" Tristan stopped his chase and planted his feet firmly on to the ground. He took careful aim with his twin cannons as he narrowed his eyes at her. Taking another barrage of shots the attack landed short of his target but the blast was enough to knock Lucette off of her feet. "Yes!" He cheered as he saw Lucette tumbling on the ground. She stopped the moment her body hit the wall.

"Now. Time to end you." Tristan said to the downed girl as he towered over her. As he fired his final shots at her a small black portal suddenly appeared between the two absorbing his attacks before disappearing almost instantly. "What!?" He was suddenly taken aback by this. Without him knowing, another black portal appeared right behind him sending the shots he fired back at him.

"Ah!" The mechanic grunted as he received his own attack from behind. The back part of his mechanized armor blew up in the process. Tristan soon fell on to his hands and knees as sparks started to fly out from his back.

"Phew...Glad that I made it on time..." Gelsey's voice was suddenly heard off-screen. The camera panning a bit showed that she was panting heavily and looked very exhausted. She had her wand raised right in-front of her with the ball tip still flowing with magic.

"Now, step away from my friend or I'll blast you to pieces." She threated Tristan as she composed herself. Tristan not willing to give up just grabbed hold of his wrench and threw it at her. Gelsey managed to easily dodge it and casted a ball of dark magic aimed right at him. His avatar disappeared the moment the attack hit.

With their opposing warden now gone, Gelsey ran towards Lucette to help her get back up. "Hey, are you okay?" She asked looking very concerned for her.

"Y-yeah. I'm good." Lucette replied as she struggled to get back up. "How did you find me though?"

"Oh, I just heard a loud rumbling noise nearby along with someone screaming. I had my doubts but I just had a feeling I had to check." Gelsey answered her. "Good thing I did as well."

"Yeah. Thanks." Lucette smiled looking very grateful for her.

"No problem." Gelsey giggled lightly. "Now lets get out of here. I saw a set of stairs leading down not far from here."

(Confessional)

Tristan: After searching this huge maze of a prison I finally found my target only to lose at the last second. *sigh* I just hope I can find them again or anyone for that matter.

Lucette: That was depressing. I almost lost this challenge for my team again. Its a good thing Gelsey came in just on time to save me. I wonder how Blake is doing right now?

Gelsey: I hope what I did was enough to put me back on my team's good side after my poor performance last challenge. I don't want to get booted off this early.

Leonard: Dammit! I can't believe I went down so easily. I really can't stand the amount of times I'm failing in this competition.

(End Confessional)

* * *

The scene now returned to the skirmish between Janet and Clint. They were shown to be dueling in the center circle. Both looked to be at their limits, Clint especially, but none of them was about to give in. Scattered all around them were a bunch of broken arrows.

"Hah!" The former roared as she attempted a jab at him with her spear. The latter just simply stepped to his to avoid the attack. Clint went in for a slash with his cutlass, Angelica, but Janet managed to block with her weapon.

"Heh, not bad." Janet said to him for they were on stand still. "For an archer you sure do know to do well with swords." She pushed Clint back and went in for a diagonal slash but Clint managed to block the attack with his sword.

Clint just scoffed at her before shoulder bashing her. Janet got knocked back a bit but was able to regain her balance immediately after. The warden taking his chance went in for a downward slash but failed when his prisoner manage to do an over head block with her spear.

Still having the upper hand, Clint quickly drew out his second blade with his free hand and slashed Janet across her chest. She stumbled back a bit but the attack did little damage due to her armor. Still keeping up the pressure, Clint just kept on going in with a combination of slashes and jabs with both of his blades. Janet was able to block and parry most but still sustained some heavy hits.

"Ah!" Janet suddenly got disarmed by Clint after getting a heavy hit to her arm. Her spear ended up rolling away far from her. "Shit." She cursed as she narrowly dodged a jab from him. Clint followed up on his attack with a slash to her right leg. "Gah." She buckled over on to her knees after receiving the hit.

Clint now having the upper hand over her he slashed her with his cutlass for the killing blow but Janet managed to duck under the attack just barely. Taking her chance now she kicked him hard in the gut using her gravity push to add more force. Clint got sent flying and landed far away from where he stood.

"Ugh..." Clint groaned out in pain as he struggled to get up after that one. With the tides now turned Janet quickly sprung back up and drew out her dagger. She now rushed towards him with her dagger drawn. With Janet now standing over him she raised her dagger up and quickly swung down on him but Clint managed to catch her arm with both of his hands. The blade stopped just inches above his face.

"Give up already!" Janet demanded as she pushed down even harder hut struggled to bring it down. Clint was just gritting his teeth with his eyes narrowed at her as he pushed back.

As the two continue on with their struggle for dominance Clint started to feel his arms giving up on him for they were noticeably shaking. A few moments later the blade started in getting closer and closer to his face. He tried to push back even harder but it was no use for he no longer had the needed strength to do it.

"Almost...there!..." Janet was giving it her all to push down on Clint. As this went on the blade got closer and closer until it was only a mere millimeter away from him until a gun shot rang out from the halls. He suddenly felt the weight on his arms lighten up soon after as well as Janet's body just slumped all over him. Her avatar flickered out a few seconds later.

"Man...that was close..." Ginger was suddenly heard across from where Clint was. The camera panning a bit revealed her to be leaning next to a wall looking very tired for she was breathing in heavily. She had her gun pointed down by this time but some light smoke was flowing out of the nozzle. "You okay?"

"I'm fine. Thanks." Clint answered her as soon as he got up. He looked quite beaten up but still manage to pull out a straight look. "You should hurry up and go. Laren was with her but she managed to escape. You might still be able to catch up with her and hopefully pass her for this forest is to dense." Clint instructed her.

"You do know acting all cool and collected won't make you the fan favorite. Right?" Ginger crossed her arms at him.

Letting out a soft grunt, Clint just walked passed his fellow marksman. "The front door is that way." He said pointing to his right.

"Whatever." She said back to him. As soon as Clint left, both Phoebe and Paris came down the staircase from the hall opposite to hers moments later.

"Oh, hey Ginger! Glad to finally see a teammate for once." Paris waved her arm at her. Phoebe was just holding on to her hand the entire time. "You know where to go from here though?"

"Yeah. Just keep close to me. Okay?"

(Confessionals)

Janet: I was THIS close to beating him! Just a little more and I could've...*sigh* I just hope my team made it out of this.

Ginger: That Clint, he may be a skilled competitor here but he doesn't have much a social game. If he makes it into merge without much allies I doubt he would last long. Which is a shame really since it would be awesome to face him the finals...What? You don't think I'll make it? *chuckles*

(End Confessional)

* * *

The scene now changed to outside and in to the dense dark forest. There wasn't any light at all for the night sky was being covered by thick amounts of clouds. Cracks of thunder howled throughout the island with only the flashes of lightning providing some light.

"Hmm, no one seems to be out here yet." Said Alice as she was shown slowly traversing through the forest alone. "Am I even going the right way?" She looked up only to see the leaves and branches blocking the sky. She let out a deep sigh, "Why do I even bother?" She asked herself rhetorically.

She continued to walk around aimlessly through the dark forest in hopes to find the right path. Alice soon stumbled upon a break in the forest where a clear forest path was laid right in-front of her. Glancing from left to right she couldn't tell which way she needed to go.

"*sigh* Fifty-Fifty chance huh? I wonder if-" She cut herself off the moment she heard someone approaching. She quickly hid herself behind the bushes and trees.

"Gelsey, are you sure this is the right way?" Lucette's voice was heard as both her and Gelsey were shown walking in from Alice's right.

"I'm sure it is. Its the only open path from the exit we took." Gelsey replied. Both of them soon walked passed where Alice was hiding.

"Hmm, so this is the right way huh?" Alice thought to herself as she watched the two walk by. She soon started to trail them slowly to listen in even more to their conversation.

"I wonder if Blake made it out of here already? I haven't seen him yet anywhere." Lucette pondered aloud with a worried look.

"I'm sure he's fine!" Gelsey said reassuringly. "He's proving himself to be a formidable player. I'm sure once we make it to the harbor he'll be there waiting for us." She added.

"Hmm, they must be the only ones from their team to make it out huh? Maybe I should..." Alice trailed off from her thoughts as she drew out her dagger. She started to close in on them but paused once she heard what Lucette had to say.

"Yeah. I guess you're right." Lucette said brightening up a bit. "And besides, a boat won't leave unless all remaining members make it there right? So I'm sure the three of us can make it out of here."

"You got that right!" Gelsey said while smiling at her companion.

Alice, hearing this, suddenly felt conflicted on whether or not to take them out now. Unknown to her that they are the only ones left alive from their team.

"Man, if I take them out now I would risk their team getting a free win if Blake is really is waiting for them." Alice thought to herself. "I should just follow them to make sure."

And so, Alice just silently trailed the two until they reached the very end. Nothing much happened throughout the entire walk for barely anything was happening. The sound of birds cawing every time a crack of thunder roared out was the only thing being heard through the silent forest.

"How far do we still have to walk?" Lucette whined a bit.

"I don't know. Its hard to tell in this darkness." Gelsey answered her.

The two continued on to walk for a bit until the sound of waves crashing was heard nearby. The two looking hopeful now picked up on their pace for they knew they were now getting close.

"C'mon, Lucette! We're almost out of here!" Gelsey said excitedly as she grabbed Lucette's hand. She started to run a bit causing her get dragged along.

"Gelsey! Slow down!" Lucette said back to her as she forced her skirt from flying up.

Alice hastened up as well to keep up with their fast movements. Moments later they were now in an abandoned looking harbor with two old boats waiting for them. As both Gelsey and Lucette continue on to reach the old harbor, Alice just stayed put in the forest with her bow drawn.

"I don't see Blake anywhere." Lucette said with a sad look as she looked around the empty harbor.

"Then that means Blake is still out there somewhere." Gelsey speculated. "Lets just wait out here for now then."

Alice, seeing no one else but them in sight, disappeared from view as she turned invisible. A few seconds later she was now shown hiding behind an old abandoned guard station by the docks. She had her bow ready with an arrow notched.

"See you two tonight." Alice muttered under her breath. She took aim and was about to fire when Chris suddenly materialized right in-front of them. "What?" Alice brought down her bow. Both Lucette and Gelsey were taken aback as well.

"Congratulations you two! You are the first ones to make it out of this island!" Chris exclaimed with his arms wide open. The host soon flicked his fingers and suddenly one of the old looking boats turned into a luxurious cruise ship. "As the first place winners you two get to enjoy the trip back into reality in this cruise ship. Feel excited?"

"Dammit!" Alice cursed herself as she stayed hidden. "I should've killed them when I had the chance."

"Oh cool. This looks awesome!" Gelsey exclaimed excitedly as she saw the large ship.

"Wait. So Blake got defeated already?" Lucette asked the host with a sad look.

"Yeah. In the most dramatic way to be exact! You should've seen what happened." Chris answered her all the while having a devious looking grin. "Anyways, step on in before Alice over there starts to get salty." He chuckled lightly. Moments later Alice got forcefully dragged out from her hiding spot. She was just hovering above the ground slightly.

"Hey! Let go of me!" Alice demanded as she struggled to get back to the ground. The two Yellow Chocobo members gasped at this.

"Sure." Chris grinned as he snapped his fingers. Alice soon fell straight to ground.

"Ow...fuck you!" Alice cursed the host as she landed on her bottom. Chris just laughed at her displeasure.

"Now step on in you two." Chris said to the other two girls as the walk way up to the ship got lowered down.

"Okay. Lets go Lucette." Gelsey stepped on the path way first.

"Y-yeah." Lucette replied. She just looked back at the forest with a sad look before walking on up. As the two made it inside the ship, smoke started puffing out from its chimney before sailing off. The ship soon disappeared into the darkness.

"Now, as for you." Chris said to Alice as he narrowed his eyes at her with his arms crossed. "Since I didn't give you the same treatment that means your other teammates are still alive somewhere."

"Yeah, I gathered as much." Alice interrupted him in which Chris just waved her off dismissively.

"Quiet." The host commanded. Alice didn't say anything further. "Now. This leaves you with two options since no one else is here. You either stay put and fight off the last team until your teammates arrive or you go back in there and search for your team." He said to her with a grin. "So what's it going to be?"

Alice, thinking it through, came to a decision and was about to speak up when a loud scream was heard echoing into the distance. "Laren!?" She recognized who it was as she turned back around staring back at the forest.

"Hmm, interesting. It seems you're now on a time limit. How inconvenient might I add." Chris started chuckling.

Alice, now thorn between the decision, couldn't decide on what to do next. Both sides will net her an advantage in some way but didn't know what to do. She looked up to see if she could get some solace but not even that would help. After a while she let out a deep sigh and took off running.

Chris now alone just watched her enter back into the forest all the while chuckling cynically to himself. "Poor choice." He said to himself. Moments later he noticed some rustling in the bushes far off into his right and noticed someone had approached. "Better late I guess."

(Confessional)

Gelsey: Yay! I think that was our first actual win ever. Too bad this challenge didn't feature any special items or something. It would have been awesome for our team have finally have one.

Lucette: Oh well, we won I guess. Too bad Blake wasn't here to enjoy this boat ride with me. *sighs dreamily* It would've been such a romantic experience even if it didn't last long.

Alice: *sighs deeply* I hope I get to her on time. I'm taking such a massive risk for doing this.

(End confessional)

The scene now showed Alice running through the dark forest. Her eyes were wondering around in hopes to find any signs of Laren being nearby.

"Dammit, where are you?" She thought to herself as she was scanning the area for anything at all.

"Ah! Help!" Laren's voice was heard echoing through out the forest once more. Alice picking up on it sounded as if she was close.

"Hold on Laren. I'm almost there." Alice hoped to herself as she ran to where the voice came from. Later, Alice soon found herself back near the prison building. "Laren! Where are you!" She called out but no response came. Moments later she heard her scream once more. "Laren!" She quickly sprinted along side the prison building.

The scene jumping ahead of Alice showed Laren being backed up into a chain fence by another zombie guard dog. She was completely terrified by the beast growling menacingly in-front of her.

"S-someone! Help!" She cried out while at the verge of tearing up. The dog's sharp rotting teeth were exposed as it slowly crawled up to her. It soon pounced forward with both front paws up in the air. "Ah!"

As the guard dog was about to land on Laren, sharp crystalline needles burst through the nearby window of the building. The guard dog started whimpering as it got struck down by the attack. It soon ran off deep into the forest with some smoke trailing behind it.

"Hmm, so this is what it feels like to save someone from a clutch moment." Kazuo was soon showed hoping over the window he shot his attack from. "Not as exciting as I initially thought." He shook his head.

"K-Kazuo?" Laren called out. The latter taking noticed just waved at her.

"Hi." He said with a wave. Without him noticing, Laren suddenly embraced him for she was a bit thankful for him saving her there. She was heard sulking a bit for her head was buried on his chest.

"*snivel* I'm glad you're here...I-I didn't know what I was going to do." Laren muttered to him. Kazuo, already expecting a similar outcome, just started stroking her long white hair.

"Don't thank me just yet." He said to her. Kazuo soon heard some rustling from behind him. "Hmm?" He turned but saw no one there.

"What is it?" Laren looked up to face Kazuo.

"Oh nothing." Kazuo said brushing off what he just heard. "We need to go now though. Others might just be lurking around this place." He said to her as he lightly pushed her off. "Come on. Lets go." He soon walked inside the forest. Laren just followed soon after.

(Confessional)

Kazuo: I wasn't really excited at all about saving Laren. I mean I was standing there the entire time waiting for something to happen *chuckles* I could have saved her earlier but decided to make it clutch instead. I got to wonder though, was someone watching us a while ago though? If so then I'm curious to see what's going to happen next.

Alice: I don't know why I decided to run off like that okay! After seeing them I felt something weird deep inside me. A feeling that I thought I shunned away a long time ago. *sigh* I should've just stayed in the harbor then I wouldn't have felt this way. At least there the only possible pain I would be feeling is a blade to my chest.

Laren: Hmm, something feels off about Kazuo. After holding on to him I was able to link up with his thoughts. Something must have been distressing him since all he was thinking about was the events that happened earlier. I wonder what he saw that I didn't notice?

(End confessional)

* * *

The scene cutting to a few minutes ahead showed the perspective of someone walking through the forest with exit just up ahead. As the person made it out they soon saw the docks now just ahead of them with Chris waving at them while Skell by his side.

"Yes! We made it!" A female voice said excitedly from beside them. Light rustling was suddenly heard behind them.

"Hmm, and it seems were the second ones to make it out of here as well." A different female voice added. She sounded more monotone and bored than the other for she was exhausted.

"Yeah. Anyways, lets go before the other team arrives." The former said followed by some light rustling.

"*sigh* Where does she even get that energy from?" Pondered the latter as some rustling followed as well.

The person just stood there taking one last long look at the docks. Suddenly they heard one of their companions calling out to them.

"Hey Phoebe! Hurry up!"

"Y-yeah." Phoebe meekly answered as the camera now revealed her. She soon walked away off-screen.

The scene now made a cut once more to the Blue Naga members approaching the two hosts on the dock. Chris was shown proudly standing there while Skell just had his arms crossed.

"Man, I can't believe I lost that bet!" The latter said looking a bit salty.

"Hey, that's what you get for betting to much on Dylan and his 'skills'." Replied the former with a grin.

"Umm, what bet are you two talking about?" Ginger raised a brow at them with her arms crossed as well.

"Oh nothing~" Chris just waved her off dismissively. "Its nothing the three of you should be concerned about."

"Yeah. Just get in your damn boat." Skell added in. The main host just kept laughing at him.

"Anyways, congratulations and here's your reward!" Chris exclaimed as he flicked his fingers. Moments later the old shady boat turned into a luxurious yacht. A walk way soon came done for them to walk on.

"Yay! I haven't been in one in such a long time!" Paris said excitedly as she dragged Phoebe along with her. "Come on Phoebe. This is going to be fun!" She said dragging her along.

"Eep. S-slow down Paris!" Phoebe replied nervously as she got dragged along. Ginger just followed them from behind while shaking her head. Just before Ginger could make it aboard the yacht, a voice suddenly called out to them.

"Hey! Don't leave without us!" Exiting from the forest was Eliza. She was badly beaten but was being held up by Phoebe's doll Savior. The latter though didn't look any better either. Majority of his torso was gone along with his arms and legs being severely busted. The only thing keeping him together was the scythe's magic.

"Eliza!" Ginger's other gun soon sprung out of her holster. Tricia turned back into her human form and ran towards her sister to give her a huge embrace. "Glad to see you're okay!"

"Heh, you think this creepy old place to beat your older sister?" Eliza gave her sister a small smile.

"Ginger, who are those two?" Paris asked as she saw them from over the railings.

"I'll explain it to you all later." Ginger replied as she hoped on board. "Hey you two! Hope on board for we're about to leave!" She called out to them.

"Okay!" Tricia answered back at her. She soon grabbed hold of Eliza's hand. "Lets go!" She soon started running back to them on the boat.

"H-Hey, be careful!" Eliza said as she struggled to find her balance on the walk way up. As the two made it inside the boat it soon set sail. It disappeared into the dark night as it got far. Savior, now on his own, just stood there watching them go. He soon broke down into glowing shards that got carried away by the sea breeze

"Oh well, now that's over. Its time we get the remaining contestants over here." Chris said as he brought out his panel.

"Fine. I'll handle in bringing back the wardens." Skell added in as he brought out his own. As the two of them pressed on their panels the remaining Red Dragon members all got transported in the docks along with the wardens.

"Hey! Why did you drag me out here for? I was still searching for them!" Dylan complained at the two hosts.

"Yeah! Me as well!" Tristan chimed in. Clint didn't say anything for he realized why they were all here.

"Oh shut it you two. The challenge is over." Chris said sternly at the two. Both of them soon fell silent.

"Hey Alice! Haven't seen you all day!" Kazuo waved at her.

"Hmph." Alice scoffed as she gave him the cold shoulder. Kazuo just tilted his head a bit at this.

"I guess the sea air isn't the only thing salty around these parts huh?" Kazuo said jokingly with a small grin on his face. Alice still didn't pay him much thought.

"Alice? Is there something wrong?" Laren asked her. She seemed confused about the situation.

Alice looking towards her roommate noticed the concerned look she gave her. Letting out a deep breath she spoke up.

"Its nothing. Just pissed about the loss." She said to her. Alice soon felt a slight chill but decided to ignore it for now.

"Okay then."

"Hey! Will the three of you pay attention?" Chris scolded them. All three of them looked towards the main host. "Good. Red Dragons, since all of you failed to escape the island that makes you all the losers for this challenge. Do I need to explain myself any further?" No response came from the entire team.

"Hey, what about us? What happens to us now?" Dylan decided to ask. Clint looked to be as curious as well.

"Are you a Red Dragon member?" The main host asked him a bit abruptly.

"No." Dylan replied.

"Then there's your answer." Chris said to him as if the answer was already obvious. "Anyways. Red Dragons. I'll be seeing you all tonight." He soon brought out his panel. With a couple commands all of the remaining contestants soon disappeared from the virtual world.

"Hmm, I kinda hoped they wouldn't be the team that would drop a member before tomorrow." Skell said with a disappointed look. "Such a shame really."

"Eh. I couldn't care less." Chris shrugged. "Anyways, go tell Chef that I won't be present for tonight so that he'll handle the cookies. I'll be settling a few things for tomorrow." He explained to his partner.

"Okay but what about the outro? Who's going to handle that?" Skell asked him with a wide grin as he already knew the answer.

"Don't milk it any further otherwise I'll have an intern do it." Chris replied looking unamused with him.

"Fine." Skell rolled his eyes.

"Good. I'll see you tomorrow then." Chris pressed a button on his panel. He soon flickered out of the virtual world. Skell did the same thing as well and he to disappeared.

* * *

(Virtual world: Open plains. Two hours before ceremony)

The scene now jumped a few hours in time inside the virtual world still. The setting was now back near outskirts of the maze. The time was around late afternoon in the virtual world for the night sky was slowly setting in.

Laying in the soft grass was Alice who stayed there deep in thought. She just stared up into the afternoon sky as she watched it fade in from orange to black. A cool breeze just whistled through area as it brushed passed her.

"*sigh* Took you long enough?" Alice said impatiently as she heard someone approach. "And don't give me the whole butterfly effect routine you keep using."

"Fine. I won't say it then." Kazuo was soon shown walking towards her. He then sat down with his legs crossed right next to her. "So tell me, why did you call me out here for? I thought you didn't like me?" He started to grin a bit.

"Shut up. I was just getting to that." Alice said rather calmly as she turned her body to the side facing away from Kazuo. "Anyways, I called you out here is for one simple reason. To make a deal with you." She explained to him a bit hesitantly.

"A deal? What kind of deal?" Kazuo looked intrigued about what Alice is about to say.

"Do I have to spell it out for you? I'm talking about an alliance here!" Alice said as she sat up straight with her eyes narrowed at him. "So do you want in or not?"

"Hmm, such an interesting offer." Kazuo commented. "If I were to say no. What would you do?"

"Hmph. That's none of your business." Alice said as she looked away from him. "I knew this was going to be a waste of time." Alice attempted to leave but Kazuo suddenly stopped her by grabbing hold of her hand.

"Where are you going? I still haven't made a decision yet." Kazuo said to her.

"If you're just going to say no then there is no need to drag this along any further." Alice said back to him as she pulled her hand away from his grasp. "See you tonight." She soon walked on away from Kazuo.

"Hey! I'll be voting off Tristan for tonight just so you know!" Kazuo said out loud. Alice paused for a bit after hearing this before continuing to walk on away. She was soon out of sight of Kazuo.

(Confessional)

Alice: Is he really going to vote off Tristan? Or is he just telling me this just to screw with me? Kazuo...what are your real intentions with me?

Kazuo: Well, that was interesting. To be honest I have nothing against Tristan. I just wanted to see if she'll take my vote as an answer to her proposal. So yeah, sorry Tristan if you get voted out tonight. I just wanted to see if she was serious with her offer.

(End Confessional)

* * *

(Chef's food tent. One hour before ceremony)

The scene now cut to inside the food tent an hour before the ceremony would start. Walking inside the tent was Ginger with Lucette along with her. They both grabbed a plate for themselves and lined up by the food table.

"Hey you two! Why don't you sit over here with us?" Blake's voice was heard calling out to them. He was shown to be sitting on a table near the upper right corner of the tent. Sitting on the seat across from his was Paris who seemed a bit displeased about the idea.

"Ugh, just my luck." Ginger shook her head as she placed some food on her plate. "Lets sit somewhere else Lucette. Uhh, Lucette?" She looked around only to see her companion sitting next to Blake. Ginger just let out a deep sigh before following her.

"Hey Ginger! How are things?" Blake said while smiling. It looked rather forced but no one seemed to notice. Ginger just ignored him and sat right next to Paris. She then proceeded to eat her food. "Earth to Ginger. Are you there?" He tilted his head a bit to match her gaze. Ginger just turned away from him.

"Might as well entertain him, dear. He's been practicing so many skits for any scenario." Paris said calmly without even looking at them. Blake narrowed his eyes at her but she just brushed him off.

"Mhmm. How nice of him to do so." Ginger finally spoke up but sounded a bit monotone. "They do say that one can never be too prepared." She added. Blake though didn't like the idea on being ganged up on.

"I'm doing just fine, Blake." Lucette said to him to change his attention but didn't end up working. She didn't seem to happy about the outcome and just decided to take drink but soon found out she didn't have one. An idea suddenly came to her.

"Hey Blake, can I ask you for a favor?" She asked in a very sweet tone. She tugged on his right sleeve for some good measure.

"Um, sure. What is it?" Blake said accepting her request. Lucette seemed a bit pleased about this.

"Can you please get me something to drink? I'm feeling rather parched and seem to have forgotten to grab one earlier." Lucette explained to him her request. She did so in a very cute manner.

"Umm, okay. What do you want then?"

"Anything will do." Lucette smiled at him.

"Okay then." Blake was about to leave when Paris suddenly stopped him.

"While you're at it can you get me a drink as well? An iced tea shall do." Paris requested from him.

The prankster just rolled his eyes away from her. "Fine. Whatever." He said before leaving the table. A few seconds later Blake came back carrying three different drinks.

"Here you go, Lucette." Blake says as he placed a glass of pink colored lemonade next to her.

"Thank you, Blake." Lucette thanked him sweetly.

"Here's yours." Blake said plainly as he gave Paris her drink.

"Finally. Took you long enough to get me one." Paris said back to him. Blake soon sat back down on his seat with the final drink going to him.

All four of them continued on to silently eat there food. They occasionally talked to each other by asking a few things but nothing much was happening to them. After a while, Ginger was the first one to finish eating for her plate was now empty.

"I'm done." She said to them as she stood up from her seat. "Lets go. I'm going to head on back to our cabin, Lucette." Ginger said to her roommate who was almost done as well.

"Aww. So soon? Can't we just stay for a little bit more?" Lucette said while holding on to Blake's arm. Blake didn't notice when she suddenly grabbed hold of it.

"No."

"Let me walk you back to your cabin. You might never know when something might pop out and attack you." Blake suddenly offered her.

"No need. We'll take our chances." Ginger replied with her arms now crossed. She soon walked around to stand next to Lucette. "Lets go." She soon dragged her away from Blake.

"Uhh, I guess we'll be seeing you two later. Bye." Lucette waved back at them just before Ginger could drag them out of there. The two cabin partners are now the only ones left in the tent.

"You do know trying too hard is a turn off for some girls, right?" Paris raised a brow at Blake's attempts.

"Whatever. That was the second time you ruined it." Blake said back to Paris. He let out a deep sigh moments later. "I'm going back to the cabin." He now left Paris alone.

(Confessional)

Paris: I really don't know what's worst. Blake being to stubborn to realize his attempts are useless on Ginger, or Lucette trying way to hard to grab his attention. They look so bad that its almost pitiful to watch really.

Lucette: Hmmm. If I don't get Blake to notice me more than Ginger I might just end up losing him. I'm not going to allow it!

Blake: What's Paris' deal anyway? That's twice now that her interfering ruined my plans! Does she know something that I don't know or something?

(End Confessional)

* * *

(Elimination grounds. Twenty minutes before ceremony)

The scene now cut to outside the food tent and into the camp grounds. Tristan was shown sitting there on his watching the fire burn right in-front of him. He looked to be deep in thought for the time being.

"Hey, you're out here early again." A female voice called out to him. Tristan turning his head around saw Janet walking towards him. "May I?" She gestured for the stump next to his.

"Go ahead." The mechanic replied as he shifted his gaze back at the fire.

"So, do you know who to vote off for tonight? Given the numbers I doubt a tie would happen." Janet said to him as she looked towards the flames as well.

"Yeah. Its an obvious vote to be exact. I suggest you vote the same way as well." Tristan said calmly to her.

"You're talking about voting for Kazuo, right? If so then how will you make sure of that?" The latter started questioning him. "You do know he also has the most valuable asset, right?" She added.

"Easy. There is already a guaranteed one vote on him with Alice. Might as well add in to that." The former answered her. "As for his 'asset', we can always get a new one along the road."

"I see." Janet nodded her head. She was about to say something else when the P.A. system interrupted her.

"Attention. The ceremony is about to begin in a few minutes. Red Dragons, please submit your votes before we begin. Thank you." Skell's voice was heard instead.

"Well, it seems our time is up." Janet stood up. "I hope that plan of yours works out." She soon walked off.

The scene now made a jump cut to where all the remaining contestants were shown in the camp grounds. Both Skell and Chef were standing in-front of the fire pit. The latter was shown holding on to a plate of dragon shaped cookies while the former held a paper in his hands.

"Hey, where's Chris?" Kazuo suddenly asked them.

"He's gone for now. He needed to attend to something important." Skell answered him. "Anyways, its time to read the votes. Like last time, the one who isn't mentioned gets eliminated." He said to them. "First one is Alice."

Chef tossed her the cookie but it crumbled due to it hitting her chest.

"Laren..."

Her cookie went flying over her head.

"Janet..."

She managed to grab hers by the neck part but the rest broke off and fell to the ground.

"Tristan. Kazuo. Both you have received votes from your team with only one receiving the most. The one who is safe tonight is...

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

...Kazuo."

"What!?" Tristan stood up in shock to see he was eliminated. "But how?" He turned back to look at his team but no one gave him a response. Kazuo though had a grin on his face since he knew his planned had worked out.

"Tristan. Your team has made the decision to vote you out tonight. Any last words?" Skell asked him.

"Wait. Wait. There has to be a mistake right? There's no way I received the most votes!" Tristan complained for he was still shocked about the results.

"I'm sorry Tristan, but the results don't lie. You are indeed the loser for tonight." Skell said calmly. "Chef, please escort Tristan here to his new pod."

"Whatever. Lets go maggot." Chef said in a bored tone as he headed towards the challenge building.

"This sucks." Tristan said before leaving with Chef. Everyone just watched them until they both disappeared inside the building.

"That is all. I suggest you all turn in early for we're going to have an early start for tomorrow." Skell announced to the remaining contestants. All of them started to scatter off to do their own things.

With the co-host now being the only one left in the camp site, the camera started to slowly zoom in on him. Skell just had his eyes while bearing a small smile. He soon opened them up as the camera stopped zooming in.

"Well, there you have it our dear viewers! The fourth challenge has now drawn to a close with Tristan of the Red Dragons being its final victim." Skell took a dramatic pause as he spread his arms wide open. "Will the sudden alliance of Kazuo and Alice be in full swing or is it just a scheme? Will Dylan's sudden show of dominance affect his standing in his team or will they now finally follow him? Will the two sister's in the Blue Nagas be a good or bad thing for them? And what does the infamous Chris have in store for our dear contestants? Find out next time on Total...Drama...Dungeon Hunters!"

* * *

Votes:

Kazuo: Like I said earlier, I'm going to vote off Tristan to see if Alice really was serious with her offer. No hard feelings though.

Alice: *sigh* I'm voting for Tristan. I may not like being played with by Kazuo but I just have this feeling that he's testing me or something.

Janet: My vote goes to Tristan. His plan might be sound but his logic is flawed. At this stage of the game, Kazuo, or more over his asset, is just way to valuable to lose.

Laren: I don't know who to vote for really. I haven't been able to talk to anybody ever since we got back. So my vote will just be for Tristan.

Tristan: I'll be voting of Kazuo. I mean it makes perfect sense since one person already has a target on him. I just hope Janet came to make the right decision as well.

* * *

Places:

18th: Estwynn Paratus. The Mech and Hero Enthusiast. Role: Fighter

17th: Derek Wright. The Dangerous Outcast. Role: Fighter

16th: Kali Dulal. The Folklore/Mythology Enthusiast. Role: Duelist

15th: Tristan Kelly. The Mechanic. Role: Back row

* * *

 **Author's note: Ah Tristan, I initially wanted him to get farther in standing when I first got the entire line-up but as the story writing progressed that prediction of mine got foggier and foggier. He made a good start with a surprising first impression but that's all his character can give (Well, for me at least...). He made a good early powerhouse for his team but was easily over taken once I gave his teammates the power they need to stand on there own. Over all, he made for a good character early but the mid-game is where he lost his luster.**

 **Anyways, I'll like to thank Kunnaki for suggesting this challenge. When I asked for challenge ideas he/she sent two PMs worth. One of those suggestions was a prison based challenge and an escape challenge. Since I liked both ideas I decided to combine them by mixing a few good themes from each challenge while adding my own personal twist to it. So yeah, thanks!**

 **Okay, time for the chapter question: Given the recent developments of the remaining contestants, who do you think now are the ones your OC is least likely to trust as well as the most likeliest? (Note: You can choose from different teams as well). Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed this more drama centered chapter and I'll see you all next time! Icathius, out.**


	10. An Exotic Taste

"What do you mean you can't make it!" Was the opening line heard to start of the show. Skell was shown in-front of the camera looking of to the side with a phone in hand.

"Chris...c'mon. The intro is about to start and I don't know what to say." He said to Chris on the other line. "What!? What do you mean good luck?"

Some static was heard from the phone in the form of laughing. Skell just had a worried look on his face.

"Chris. Don't you hang up on me now...Chris...Chris...Chris!" A phone hanging up was heard from Skell's end. "Dammit!" He cursed as he returned his phone back into his pocket. He then turned around to face the camera only to see it was rolling.

"Uhh, how long has that camera been rolling?" Skell asked as he looked a bit surprised.

"Just a little while ago." The director off-screen said to him. "We needed to make the intro. Now."

With a worried look, Skell was franticly looking around the set for he didn't know what to say or do. Moments later he suddenly got an idea.

"I'll be right back." Skell ran away off-screen. A title card with the words 'We'll be right back' flashed on screen accompanied by a long beep sound.

The intro scene soon came back with Lucette, Phoebe, and Alice now on-screen. All three of them looked a bit groggy while still wearing there sleep outfits.

"*yawn* Why did you drag us out here for? Its still way to early in the morning." Alice said to Skell who was standing behind the camera.

"Yeah, I'm still to tired from yesterday." Lucette added in. She soon gave the camera a soft yawn. Her sleep outfit was just a simple white tank top paired up with pink shorts. She also held onto a white teddy bear with one hand.

"Brrr...i-i-its t-to c-c-cold a-as well..." Phoebe said meekly as she was noticeably shivering. "Achoo." She sneezed but sounded so cute that an 'aww' sound was heard from behind the camera.

"I just need the three of you to make the intro for today's episode." Skell explained to them from behind the camera.

"What!? You're the host. Aren't you the one that's supposed to handle this?" Alice crossed her arms at him. "Don't you have a script or something?" She added in.

"Well, no. Not exactly. Chris just makes them up before the intro starts." Skell answered. He sounded a bit embarrassed about this. "So I uhh don't know what to say because of that..."

"Wow. Aren't you pathetic." Alice said while shaking her head. "I'm outta hear." She walked away. The other two girls were left on-screen. Lucette is shown to be fast-asleep while Phoebe was still shivering.

"Hey Phoebe, want something warm to drink?" The camera man offered her.

"Y-yeah. Thanks." Phoebe said with a small smile as she walked behind the camera. She accidentally brushed passed Lucette's shoulder causing her to wake up.

"Huh? What?" Lucette started looking around. She soon noticed she was the only one left on stage. "Umm uhh I'm going to head on back to my cabin now. Excuse me." She said before leaving the scene.

The camera now panned to the side to show Skell looking quite dumbfounded. "Total Drama: Dungeon Hunters..." He said with a forced smile. "I'm so dead..." He mumbled to himself.

~(Theme Song)~

* * *

(Elimination grounds)

It was the start of a new day with the morning sun slowly rising up from the horizon. All the remaining contestants were gathered around the empty fire pit with Skell standing in the middle. They all still wore their sleeping wear with most of them still half-asleep.

"Good morning everyone! Did all of you sleep well last night?" Skell said to them enthusiastically. This woke up some of the contestants.

"*yawn* Why did you gather us all out here for?" Janet asked still looking a bit drowsy. She stretched her arms out for a bit.

"Yeah. What time is it anyways?" Blake added in. He let out a soft yawn afterwards.

"Last I checked it was around six." Paris answered him instead.

"Huh? Why call us so early, Skell?" Gelsey asked him now. She looked a bit surprised by this.

"The answer to that is simple really. I called all of you out here today because I have a special announcement to make." Skell said to them. He looked very much excited. This grabbed everyone's attention.

"Special announcement? What, are we going to all be in-charge in making the intros now?" Alice said to the co-host with her arms now crossed. "Like what you made us do earlier."

"Yeah. I was having a nice dream as well." Lucette pouted at him. She had her teddy bear sitting on her lap.

"I can only imagine what it was about." Gingered muttered under her breath. Lucette didn't seem to notice this though.

"I was placed on the spot okay!" Skell said trying to defend himself. "And like I said earlier, Chris just makes them up before the recording starts so I had nothing to go on by." He added in. This didn't seem to help though because of the judgmental look Alice gave him.

"Such a host." She said while shaking her head low.

"Oh c'mon. Cut him some slack Alice. Everyone makes mistakes." Kazuo said to her with a huge grin on his face. A blanket was shown to be wrapped around him.

"Your the one to talk." Alice narrowed her eyes at him. Kazuo didn't mind this though for he still had his grin on his face.

"Ugh, can you just hurry up and say it already! You're just wasting our time here." Leonard impatiently demanded from the co-host.

"Cool it Leonard. No need to get all mad now." Dylan scolded him. Leonard just kept a steady glare at him. "Anyways. Skell. What is it that you were about to tell us?"

"Oh, right, umm, I'm here to announce that we're going to re-shuffle our current teams into two." Skell finally said to them. Everyone was suddenly taken aback by this.

"A new team? How come?" Gelsey suddenly asked. She looked quite surprised by this.

"Yeah. Why the sudden team switch though?" Ginger had her head titled a bit.

"Oh, its to keep things even now that we are down to fourteen contestants." Skell explained to them. "Anyways, the names I will call shall stay to my right. Okay?"

Everyone just nodded in agreement.

"Good. Lets start things of with Kazuo." The co-host started.

The aforementioned soon stood up and walked towards Skell. A strong enough breeze soon whistled through the grounds causing his blanket to fall off and expose his bare self save for his underwear. Unlike last time though, he was in full view of everybody. Most of the girls gasped at this.

"Oh my." Lucette blushed as she saw Kazuo once.

"Oooh~" Gelsey purred. "I wasn't able to get a good look at him last time so damn..."

"Phoebe! Avert your eyes!" Paris quickly blocked Phoebe's view of him.

"Eeep." Phoebe got startled when Paris suddenly blocked her eyes with her hands.

"Hmph. I've worked with better." Alice commented in a bored tone.

"Hmm? What do you mean by that Alice?" Laren asked with a cheeky grin. Alice felt a bit embarrassed by what she said.

"Th-that's not what I meant!"

"Eh, he ain't half-bad." Janet shrugged.

"So much commotion just for a half-naked guy." Ginger just shook her head at them.

"Hmm, didn't plan for this to happen but eh, I'll take it." Kazuo just shrugged as he picked his blanket back up. He soon draped it around his shoulders.

"Okay...moving along now. Next up is Phoebe." Skell continued.

The doll faced girl just shyly walked up to the front.

"Hey! It seems we're now teammates!" Kazuo smiled at the small girl. He soon started playing with her golden blond hair. Phoebe couldn't respond to this.

"Clint."

Clint just adjusted his glasses before standing up. He walked towards the two and didn't say anything to them.

"Lucette."

Lucette got up from her seat but dropped her teddy bear in the process. She picked it back up and patted away the dust before proceeding to stand next to her new team.

"Blake."

"Yay!" Lucette cheered at the mention of his name.

Blake just groggily walked towards them. Lucette instantly locked her arms around his the moment he got close.

"Janet."

"Great." Janet muttered sarcastically as she stood up. She proceeded to stand next to her new team.

"And lastly, Alice." Skell ended with the final member.

"What!?" Alice was taken aback by this. "Are you being serious right now?"

"You weren't supposed to be here originally." Skell said to her while grinning. "But given your rude commentary I made an exemption to this."

"How's that even fair!" Alice glared at him. Skell just gave her a shrug.

"Hey, look at the bright side. At least most of the team consists of your old team." Skell laughed at her. Alice didn't like this one bit. "Now get up and head on over hear."

"Whatever." Alice rolled her eyes as she walked towards them. Everyone mentioned for the new team are now all standing in the front.

"Good. From now on, you'll all be known as the Diamond Dusk Wolves." Skell announced to them.

"A wolf? Well, at least we know we already have a mascot." Kazuo joked as he looked towards Clint. Clint didn't find it amusing though.

"*sigh* At least the team name is suitable." Alice commented on it.

"Now, for all that remained, please stand to my left." Skell commanded the remaining contestants to do. They all followed and were now standing to his left. "Ginger, Nathan, Paris, Leonard, Gelsey, Dylan, and Laren, your new team is going to be called the Golden Dawn Elves!" He announced to them.

"An elf huh? Sounds good to me!" Ginger exclaimed looking quite excited.

"Hmm, a new team doesn't sound half-bad." Paris shrugged as she looked at her new teammates.

"This looks like it could work. So as long as you guys don't get in my way." Dylan declared to his new team.

"I hope we all would work well together!" Laren smiles warmly to her team. Nathan gave her a nod with a small smile.

"I doubt that would ever happen." Leonard said from under his breath.

"Okay. Now that everyone has met their new team, its time to begin today's challenge!" Skell announced to them. Everyone was surprised by this.

"What!? Why now? I'm not even ready!" Said Lucette looking a bit panicked.

"Yeah! We haven't even eaten breakfast yet!" Gelsey added in. Everyone seemed to have agreed with her. Skell was just shown to be silently chuckling at them.

"Calm down everyone. There's a specific reason for this." The co-host said calmly to them. Almost everyone seemed to have settled down a bit. "Good. Now, the reason why we're starting the challenges early is because it revolves around you guys cooking up the three most important meals. Starting off with breakfast!" He exclaimed.

Everyone was suddenly taken aback by this.

"Oh c'mon, I can barely prepare cupped noodles let along cook!" Blake complained.

"I-I don't kn-know how to cook either..." Phoebe pouted.

"Don't worry Phoebe, I'm sure everything will turn out great!" Kazuo said trying to cheer her up.

"We're doomed." Alice said silently while shaking her head. Janet noticed and got worried as well.

Murmurs and whispers soon filled the air as everyone was thinking about what to do now. Skell was shown to be silently laughing at then while this was going on. He soon clapped both his hands together in which grabbed everyone's attentions.

"Now, since I'm a much more generous host than Chris is, I'll be giving you guys an hour to go prepare yourselves." The co-host smiled at them. "Especially you Kazuo." He said in a more serious tone.

"Just one hour? Have you seen the men's bathroom?" Leonard started to complain. "Its barely big enough for two people!"

"Not my problem." Skell said with a sly looking grin on his face. "You guys better get going. Time's a ticking."

Everyone soon fled the area and headed on back to their respective cabins leaving the co-host on his own. The camera started to slowly zoom in on him as he was shown to be flashing a wide smile.

"Well now, now that the new teams are chosen lets see how they will all fair this time around." He said to the camera. "I'll see you all in the virtual world later." He winked at the camera.

(Confessionals)

Alice: *sigh* New team. New potential targets on my back. It was a stroke of luck that got me far in my old team but this one is different. Not only am I in a team with Kazuo again I'm also in a team with two Yellow Chocobo members. I just hope that Kazuo stays true to his end of the bargain.

Laren: Hmm, sad to see that I'm the only one from my old team that is part of this new team. Having to adjust now would be difficult but I'm sure it will all work out. I just hope that Alice can feel the same for her new team.

Kazuo: Now isn't this an interesting set up. Both Clint and Phoebe along with Blake and Lucette are in the same team together. From what I've gathered these pairings are the most drama filled ones from their respective teams, including me and Alice. I wonder what's their reason for grouping us all up?

Lucette: Yippee! I'm still in the same team as Blake! Not only that I also got Phoebe now with me! I wonder how things are going to be like for our new team now? Though it does suck knowing that Ginger is still my enemy, but hey, at least I can have Mr. Prankster over here all to myself for a while. *sighs dreamily*

Ginger: Damn, Phoebe is no longer on my team. I did what I could to protect her now I'm forced to face her. I just hope my skills with Eliza and Tricia can hold on their own against her doll Savior with that dreaded scythe Selena. Now that I think about it, how was that doll of hers still able to act on its own even though Phoebe was far from it as well as it being in completely dismantled last time? I got to ask Eliza if she knows anything about it.

Paris: Aww, cute little Phoebe is no longer in the same team as me. Its a damn shame knowing that I have to fight her now. Hopefully it doesn't boil down to it. Not because I can't handle killing her its just that doll of hers is starting to feel umm unnerving now. Its as if Phoebe has no control over it anymore ever since it got that scythe. Maybe I'm just over reacting or something. Its probably nothing, right?

Clint: Hmph. The biggest threat so far in Kazuo is on my team now. I don't entirely trust him due to the actions he does. Reading through that folder of his from last challenge makes him an unstable ally to keep around. He may claim the butterfly effect is his soul purpose but I have a slight feeling that it isn't.

Dylan: New team huh? Could be worse I guess. So as long as I can keep this new team under my control I'm confident that I'll make it to the merge. Especially now that Blake is on the enemy team. No more holding back for me once I encounter him on virtual field.

Phoebe: Um, I h-hope this n-new team i-is just as nice as my old team was. I-Its good t-to know that Clint is still here w-with me but I'm n-not sure about the others...H-huh? Th-theres nothing g-going on between m-me and Clint. He j-just stands out f-for me is all...

(End Confessional)

The time jumped an hour ahead to showcase everyone now back inside the challenge building. They were all now wearing their normal outfits and were just gathered in-front of the main control panel. Most of them stood by their new team while some just stood by at the back.

"Is everyone ready to go?" Skell asked them. Everyone just nodded. "Good. Any questions before we head on in?" Blake raised his hand. "Yes?"

"What are we going to cook exactly? I just have this feeling that our food is going to be a bit umm exotic for our taste." The prankster said to the host.

"Yeah, I'm curious about that as well." Janet chimed in. "Don't tell me we're going to cook something as repulsive as goblins now."

"Eww. Those weird green things? I'd rather eat nothing." Paris looked a bit disgusted about the idea of eating monster meat.

"Oh my god, I think I'm going to be sick now that I think about it." Lucette soon covered her mouth as she looked to be at the verge of hurling.

"Uhh, *gulp* I'm sure it isn't as half bad as it looks." Laren said with a weary smile. She looked to be trembling a bit though.

"Are you guys crazy or something? I'm sure they have something 'normal' in there, right?" Said Ginger as she looked towards the co-host. Skell was just silently chuckling to himself. "Umm, Skell?" She looked a bit worried now.

"Good luck!" Is all Skell said to them as he pressed a button on his panel. The glass panes of all the available pods all opened up at the same time. Everyone knew what this meant and all got inside. As everyone got in, the glass closed in on them and soon they all started to fall asleep one by one.

"Well now, that was fun!" Skell exclaimed to the camera in-front of him now. "Will these new teams be a good or bad thing for our contestants? Are the guts of our contestants just as strong as they are? And which of the new teams would claim first place for this challenge? Lets all find out now, shall we?"

The scene now moved to inside the virtual world. There wasn't a new setting for our contestants at all for they were all just in the maze outskirts. Only thing different is that there are two separate outdoor kitchens complete with all the necessary tools they might all need. All the contestants were shown to be gathered around in their respective team's kitchen.

"Wow. We're seriously going to cook huh?" Paris said as she inspected her team's stove. "Well, time to show everyone what I got!" She said proudly.

"Wait, you seriously know how to cook?" Ginger asked her. "If that's the case then we have this in the bag!" She exclaimed.

"Oh, isn't this interesting. We have regular food in here as well." Gelsey was heard saying as she was shown to be inspecting the insides of a fridge.

"Let me see!" Laren said as she walked up to the fridge. Looking inside she saw an assortment of foods and vegetables along with a couple condiments. All the girls were excitedly giggling and talking as they were all gathered in the kitchen area. The camera panning around showed the three Golden Dawn Boys standing to one side.

"Uhh, do you guys know how to cook?" Dylan whispered to them. Nathan just gave him a silent shrug.

"Hmph. So much for our genius." Leonard uttered silently from under his breath.

"Ah!" Phoebe was heard screaming from her team's side of the field. The camera revealed she had tried to open up the stove but the fire got out of hand. "Um, uhh, somebody h-help." She said looking a bit panicked.

"*sigh* I got it." Alice said for she was nearby. She twisted the knob and the fire died down.

"Th-thank you." The doll faced girl said meekly.

"Hmm, this place looks a lot fancier then what I work with." Said Kazuo as he was standing behind a long silver table. Hanging above it were various cutlery and pans. "Lets see if I can pull off something interesting." He grinned.

"Hey Blake, if I end up cooking up something, do you want to be the first one to taste it?" Lucette asked the prankster a bit flirtatiously.

"Umm..." Blake trailed of for he didn't know what to say. "Uhh...sure I guess?" He looked a bit unsure.

"Yay! I'll make sure you won't regret it!" Lucette jumped in joy.

"I better hope so..." Blake muttered under his breath. Lucette didn't seem to notice this though.

The place was soon filled with the contestants talking to one another. Most of the girls looked to be excited about today's challenge while most of the guys kept to themselves. After a while of them just minding their own, Skell soon appeared in the virtual world.

"Everyone. May I have your attentions please?" He asked of them. All of the contestants soon looked his way. "Good. Its time for me to explain the mechanics of this challenge." He cleared out his throat. "As I said earlier all of you will be cooking the three different kinds of meals; Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner. You all can cook whatever it is that you want but here's the catch." He paused for some dramatic effect. "You'll have to hunt down the main ingredients I'll be making you all use."

A lot of commotion came from the contestants after hearing this.

"Are you serious? Why can't you just give us the main ingredients instead." Gelsey pouted at this.

"Hunting is fine with me. As long as I can avoid being in the kitchen I'll take it." Dylan said brightening up a bit.

"Of course you can avoid the kitchen. What are you, a girl?" Blake joked. Dylan didn't seem to hear him but the girls in Blake's team all shot him dirty looks. "I'm just kidding." He raised both his hands up defensively.

"Just for that comment you'll be starving." Alice said with a serious tone at him. She had her arms crossed and eyes narrowed at him. Most of the girls seemed to agree with her.

"What!? I was only kidding!" The prankster insisted. "Guys, a little help here?" He franticly looked towards Kazuo and Clint. Both of them just back away from him. "Screw you guys." He muttered.

"Hmm, hunting for a special ingredient huh? I feel bad for the poor thing we have to kill." Laren frowned a bit.

"Don't worry about it Laren, its not real so its going to be fine." Paris said to her reassuringly. Laren cheered up a bit.

"Yeah. I guess so." Laren said in response.

"Hmm, I wonder what kind of dish we can make from monsters." Ginger started pondering about this. "Will it even be edible?"

"We better hope so. Otherwise we'll be starving until tomorrow..." Gelsey answered her. She rubbed her belly as she did.

Chatter from all of the contestants soon filled the air for everyone was talking about what to do.

"Guys!" Skell called out to them. None of the contestants looked his way due to all the commotion. "GUYS!" All of the contestants heard him and looked his way. "Good. Now, let me explain a few more things before we finally begin." He said to them. "But before that, a question. Ahem. Everyone knows that in a kitchen people have specific roles, right?" The co-host asked them.

Everyone nodded in agreement.

"Okay. Well, with that in mind, all of you will have specific roles as well. There are three roles: The Head Chef, The Assistant Chefs, and The Hunters. The Head Chef will be the one in charge of cooking. The Assistants we'll be the one in-charge of doing all the dirty work. While the Hunters, well, hunt." Skell explained to them.

"Also, there can only be a specific number of people per role; One head Chef obviously while the remaining two has three." He added in. "Any questions before we get to assigning?" No one bothered to ask. "Okay. First, lets start of with the Head Chefs. Those who want to be the Head Chef, please step up."

All of the contestants soon turned towards their respective teammates.

"Hey, can I be the Head Chef? I've been to many places across Europe to practice their cooking styles." Paris said stepping up to her team. "If you ask me how well I can cook all I could say is that I can rival even Gordan Ramsey's cooking." She added with a lot of confidence

"Oh wow, really? That sounds so cool!" Gelsey commented as she looked quite amazed by this. "You should totally be the Chef then."

"Hmm, if you put it that way then sure!" Ginger agreed with them. "You guys all agree?"

"Yeah!" Laren gave then a thumbs up.

"Well, we don't have much choice. I can barely cook for my own." Dylan said to them.

"Hmph. As long as I'm not the one cooking I could care less." Leonard said in a bored tone. Nathan didn't say anything but gave a nod at them with a hum.

"Good. Its settled then." Paris said with a small smile. She soon turned to face Skell.

"Well?" The co-host asked.

"I'll be the Head Chef for my team." The dancer answered

"Good. Come on over then." Skell called her over to the front. Paris obliged and was now standing on his right. He then looked towards the Diamond team. "What about you guys?" He asked them.

"Wait! We're still planning here." Janet answered him. She soon turned back around to face her team.

"Anyways, why can't I be the Head Chef? Don't you guys trust my cooking skills?" Kazuo said to his team. He had a sly looking grin on his face.

"More like we don't trust you in general." Alice said back to him. Kazuo raised a brow at her but she just scoffed and looked away.

"If we can't trust Kazuo, then how about Phoebe? She might make for a good chef." Lucette suggested.

"Uhh, I-I'm sorry b-but I'm n-not good in c-cooking." Phoebe meekly answered. "I m-mostly had people c-cook for me so I n-never learned how."

"What a drag, how come none of us know how to cook except for Kazuo?" Alice said with her arms now crossed. Her teammates didn't seem to know the answer as well. "Ugh, are we seriously going to rely on Kazuo for this?"

Everyone, except Kazuo, looked like they had no choice in this. Silence fell upon the team for they knew the risk that they would be taking. As it went on like this for a good short while, Blake suddenly spoke up.

"Well..." Blake trailed off as he looked a bit embarrassed for what he was going to say next. "I actually do know how to cook. I just feel a bit embarrassed for anyone to know..." The prankster explained to them. Everyone though looked like they couldn't believe him.

"Is this one of your many pranks? If so then its not funny since this is a serious matter." Alice said sternly towards him.

"I'm serious. I do know how to cook." The prankster said defending himself. "I understand that you guys might see it as a prank I might pull on you guys but I'm being dead serious here." He further added.

"Then what was that comment about you not being able prepare even cup noodles then?" Alice questioned him even further. She had her eyes narrowed on him now. The prankster was hard pressed to find an answer to give. "Well?"

"Well I...lied okay. I said that so that no one would suspect me." Blake finally answered. "And besides, if I did wanted to pull a cooking prank then it wouldn't be something like this. I want to win to you know?" He added in with a serious look.

Alice didn't say anything else further for she was just staring right at him now. Her eyes were still narrowed at him but they were noticeably inspecting him. She soon let out a deep breath and placed her right hand on her hip.

"Fine. At least its better then having Kazuo." She finally said to him. Everyone else now looked like they can all agree to this.

"Thanks." Blake said to them all.

"Yay! We're having Blake be the Head Chef. This is awesome!" Lucette exclaimed a bit cheerily. She did so while grabbing on to his entire right arm.

"Fine. Let him have the role then." Kazuo said but looked a bit salty.

"Great. I'll make sure I won't disappoint." The prankster assured as he ran off towards the Skell. The other team looked a bit surprised to see Blake walk on up.

"Took you guys long enough." The co-host said to him.

"Hmm." Paris hummed as she sizing him up. "Oh well, easy win I guess." The dancer taunted her roommate.

"We'll see about that." The prankster said back to her.

"Hmm, spicy." Skell commented. "Anyways, now that we have our Head Chefs, its time to choose their assistants!" He exclaimed. "Chefs, make your choice."

"Okay. I'll take Gelsey, Laren, and Ginger." Paris said to him.

"Yay! I'll be happy to help!" Gelsey said with a big smile.

"I'll do my best as well." Laren nodded.

"Wait, why am I an assistant? Can't it be someone else instead?" Ginger insisted.

"Would you trust any of the guys to do the cooking?" Paris asked her?

Ginger took a quick glance to look at the three boys standing behind her. She soon realized who were left and just let out a deep sigh before answering her.

"Fine. I'll do it." She answered.

"Great. I knew you'll see it my way." Paris said happily. "Okay. I'm done." She said to Skell this time.

"That was fast." The co-host commented. "What about you Blake?"

"Wait. I'm still trying think here!" Blake said back to him. "Hmm, who to choose." He pondered to himself.

"Hey, what about me Blake? I'll be happy to be your assistant." Lucette said to him with a sweet smile. Paris noticed this and gave her a cold stare.

"Hmm, okay." Blake agreed. Lucette looked very much pleased with this. "Only two left then."

"How about Phoebe? She might make for some good help." Lucette happily suggested.

"Alright. I choose Phoebe as well then." Blake declared. Phoebe was surprised to hear this.

"Huh? B-but..." The doll faced girl trailed off with a worried look on her face. "I d-don't know h-how I c-can help..." She frowned.

"Don't worry. I'm sure its going to be fine." Lucette reassured her with a big smile.

"One more member left then." Blake thought. He started to scan around his remaining teammates to see who else was suitable for the roll. He had a hard time choosing since his thoughts kept coming back to Kazuo. Everyone from his team took notice of this for his eyes kept darting back to Kazuo ever so often.

After a short moment of Blake thinking it through, he soon came to a decision. "*sigh* I choose Kaz-"

"I'll do it." Clint said cutting Blake off. Everyone was surprised to hear this. "What? I just said I'll do it." He raised a brow at them.

"Umm, its just that you look like you're better off to be a hunter. You sure about this?" Blake questioned Clint's intentions.

"Yeah. Is there a problem?" Clint answered calmly.

"No. No problem at all." Blake said while making a gesture for it. He now turned to face Skell. "Well, I guess that's all."

"Okay. Interesting set-up might I add." Skell commented. "Now that the Chefs have their assistants that only means the rest that weren't called are the hunters." He explained to them. "Hunters. Please take your positions next to our chefs so that we can finally begin." He said calling for them.

Leonard, Dylan, and Nathan from the Golden Dawn Elves walked up to the front followed by Kazuo, Alice, and Janet from the Diamond Dusk wolves soon after. Once the hunters got into position with the chefs, Skell started to speak up once more.

"Okay. Hunters, you guys are tasked now with finding for the main ingredient that I would be saying for each of the meals. You guys can search anywhere for them so as long as you guys get back here within a certain time frame I'm allotting for the hunt." The co-host explained to them.

"Now, onto the main ingredient." Skell gave off a small smile. "For our breakfast, the main ingredient is going to be relatively simple to cook, and that is a monster egg of any kind."

"Hmm, sounds exotic but I can make due." Paris shrugged.

"A monster egg? Sounds easy enough." Blake said confidently. "But I wonder what it would taste though?"

"Don't worry about how it would taste. We need to worry about where to find one first." Janet said to him.

"A monster egg you say?" Kazuo repeated. "I think I know where to find one." He said happily.

"Ugh, I think I know what place he's talking about." Nathan said with a disgusted look.

"Why? Where do you think he's going to get one?" Dylan asked him in a whispered tone.

"The Gorgons nest." Nathan answered him the same way. Dylan looked like he was about to hurl as well.

"Oh god. Thinking about it now makes me sick." Dylan whispered back with a slight gag. Alice noticed the two and felt a slight chill creep up on her but she decided to keep it to herself for now.

"Lets just find this damn egg already. I'm starving here!" Leonard growled at them.

"Okay. Time to begin the hunt!" Skell announced to them. "For this simple task I'll be giving you guys thirty minutes to finish. So on your marks...get set...go!" The two group of hunters soon took off in separate ways.

"Everyone, follow me. I know where we can find one easily." Said Kazuo to his team as he took off towards the maze.

"For your sake just hope you get this one right." Alice said coldly towards him.

"Good luck guys!" Lucette waved them off.

"Lets search through the forest instead. I bet there are a couple birds nests up in these trees." Dylan said as he lead his team to the opposite direction away from the maze. Leonard and Nathan didn't say anything else and just followed.

The two teams of hunters were now out of sight from everyone else who remained.

(Confessional)

Clint: I volunteered to be an assistant mostly due to one thing: I don't trust Kazuo. After reading through his files from last challenge as well as when we were both on the same team during the arena challenge he has proven himself to be a volatile teammate to have. I'll have to keep tabs on him from time to time to make sure he won't catch me off-guard again.

Kazuo: Hmm, such a sad outcome for me since I can't showcase my cooking skills. I can't blame them though, I've practically made a name for myself here to not be trusted. *chuckles*

Paris: What a surprise. The local prankster turns out to be hiding a hidden skill, in cooking no less. I wonder if his cooking skill is just as good as his pranking skills. Half-baked. *laughs* What? Don't you guys get a little cooking joke?

(End Confessional)

The scene now transitioned to following Dylan, Leonard, and Nathan. All three of them were shown to be searching through the thick amounts of foliage around them.

"Hey guys, this looks promising." Nathan called out to them. The other two soon went to his direction.

"What is it?" Dylan asked. Nathan showed them a large golden feather.

"I found this near the bushes." He explained. "This could mean a nest might be nearby." He added.

"That, or a bird just randomly flew by and the feather just fell off." Leonard said to him.

"Well, its better than finding nothing." Dylan scoffed at him. "Where did you find this anyways?" He asked Nathan now.

"Over by the bushes there." Nathan pointed towards a bush planted by the base off a large tree.

"Hmm, its worth a shot." Dylan said while scaling the tree with his eyes. "So, who's good at climbing?"

The scene now changed to inside the molten part of the maze where Kazuo did his first challenge. Both girls had there weapons drawn while trailing slightly behind Kazuo who just walked on with little care. As they continued on to walk, a slight rumbling noise was heard and soon a wall collapsed cutting the girls off from Kazuo. Lava came pouring out of the wall but didn't spread for it wasn't a lot.

"Look out!" Janet yelled as she pulled back Alice from the crumbling wall. "Phew, that was close." The gem in her spear glowed brightly a bit. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, thanks." Alice responded. She soon managed to get around the fallen debris and lava and made it to the other side. "Now hurry up, I don't want Kazuo to be out of sight for too long." She went on ahead.

"Your welcome I guess." Janet silently muttered to herself.

(Confessional)

Janet: Hmm, for the most part our old team reigns dominant for this new team. Normally this would be a good thing since the votes would be in our favor but most normal teams don't have someone like Kazuo. His personality is a hit or miss with a higher risk then reward. I'm surprised my old team managed to only lose twice while knowing this so I wonder how this new team will work out.

(End Confessional)

The camera cutting ahead now showed Kazuo just walking on his own for the time being. He didn't pay much attention to his surroundings for he looked like he was just taking a casual stroll through a park. After a while of just walking around the maze he soon came across an intersection.

"Hmm, where to go now." He pondered to himself. He looked down all three paths before making his choice. He soon turned to his left and followed that path. "I wonder where this will take me."

As he continued to walk through the near molten path, another choice in path to take was laid right in-front of him. Glancing from both left to right he soon made a quick decision and headed down the right pathway. After a couple more minutes of walking he soon ended up in a large spacious area.

"Interesting." Kazuo commented as he scanned the area. Moments later he soon found what he was looking for. "Bingo." He started walking towards a part of the clearing where a bunch of very large eggs were grouped together. The eggs ranged from a smooth cream color to a dark grey-ish one but all had shared features of having glowing bright red veins wrapping all over each one.

As Kazuo was about to approach the eggs to get a much closer look, he suddenly stopped in the middle for he noticed some of the eggs were shaking followed by some feint cracking sound. Moments later, the veins on some of the grey eggs started pulsating and soon demonic bat-winged creatures hatched from the eggs. Large horns were adorned at the side of their heads coupled with sharp claws on each of their hands.

"Hmm, it seems Gorgons aren't the only things occupying this place." He said as he brought out his spell book. The book started to glow bright with magic.

(Confessional)

Kazuo: Hmm, did not expect to see other creatures in here as well. I just assumed that only Gorgons would be the only things in here. I should've expected Chris to add in more than just one certain type of monster in here. Oh well, at least Gargoyles would put up much more of a decent fight then Gorgons.

(End Confessional)

The scene now returned back to the forest where the other hunters were. Both Nathan and Dylan were shown looking up the tree with some leaves falling down. The camera panning up showed Leonard climbing it.

"Hurry up Leonard! I don't think we have much time left!" Dylan ordered him to move.

"Shut up! Why don't you do all the climbing yourself then!" Leonard spat back at him. He continued on to climb higher up the tree. He reached up for a nearby branch and almost lost his hold on it but was able to regain his composure just in time. Letting out a sigh of relief he went continued to climb on up.

"Man, I really hope an egg is up there. I'm starving right now." Dylan whined a bit. Nathan didn't say anything else but felt same for he just nodded. After a few moments of silently waiting, an idea soon came to Dylan's mind. "Hey Nathan, I worked with you during the arena challenge. You proved to be a strong competitor and yet I was able to easily beat you during the last challenge. How come then?" He started to ask.

"Oh, that, well, you were able to out smart me is all." Nathan calmly answered. "If it was a straight up duel then maybe." Dylan started to feel intrigued by this.

"Really now?" He pointed towards him now. "I'll take you up on that."

"Guys! I think I found something!" Leonard was heard calling out to them. The camera panning back up towards him revealed a large pile of leaves and twigs right above him. "I think its a nest!" He added.

"A nest? Are there any eggs in them?" Dylan asked him now.

"I don't know yet! I still need to get a closer look." Leonard answered. He soon started climbing up until he was in the same level as the nest. Looking inside he saw a couple medium sized eggs. All of which being in the same shade of white from the bottom while slowly turning a deep orange as it reached the tip. "Yeah, there's about half a dozen of them."

"Good job! All we need now is to find a way to bring them down without breaking them." Dylan soon started looking around the forest. "Hold on up there, okay?"

"Its not like I have much of a-" Leonard was suddenly interrupted as a loud screech was heard behind him. Turning around with a pained expression on his face he soon saw what made that sound. "Ah shit..."

The scene now went back to the molten maze. Kazuo was shown standing in the middle of the clearing with, oddly enough, flaming needles floating all over him, circling all around him with the tips facing up. Flying up above him were the Gargoyles that hatched. With a quick hand motion the needles went flying up in the air all aimed at them.

"Lets see if this will work." Kazuo commented on his attack with a wide grin. As the needles went flying it soon made contact with the creatures up in the air but did no damage or even phased them at all. "Hmm, just like the Gorgons, fire has no effect on them."

As soon as Kazuo's attack had ended, the Gargoyles all soon dived towards him with their sharp claws all aimed right at him. With all of them now fast approaching, Kazuo quickly unsheathed his golden sword from his robe and erected a holy barrier surrounding him. All of the Gargoyles got repelled away from him as soon as they made contact.

"Hmm, and it seems they're part demonic after all if a holy barrier repels them." Kazuo said to himself. He soon gripped on to Aurum's hilt firmly. "Now, lets see if I can do what that boss did to me a few challenges ago." With a quick slash on his barrier it started to crack with light emitting through it. Moments later, shards of light burst out hitting most the Gargoyles surrounding him.

All the Gargoyles that got hit by shards all started shrieking in pain with smoke flowing through their bodies. Moments later they started to burn up and collapse one by one until only those who were able to avoid the attack were left standing. Kazuo just gave those that remain a cynical stare paired up with a devious grin. The Gargoyles soon took off leaving him alone.

"Hmph. Newly borns." Kazuo shook his head in disappointment at them.

"Kazuo!" Alice was soon heard off-screen calling out to him. Kazuo turning around to see where it came from saw Alice quickly approaching with Janet trailing behind.

"Hey, took you guys long enough." Kazuo smiled at them while giving them a wave.

"Cut the shit Kazuo." Alice said plainly. "We saw some monsters fly off from here."

"Alright. Alright." Kazuo said while still maintaining his smile. "I found some eggs with a couple hatching on me. They're right over there if you want to see them." He pointed to his side. The two girls now looked towards where he pointed at and saw the large eggs that were still intact.

"Oh wow. These are some rather large eggs." Janet looked mystified as she saw them. She still couldn't believe the size the eggs were.

"How on earth are we going to carry these back to the others?" Alice started questioning him. "Do you even have a plan to carry them out of here?"

Kazuo started to silently chuckle at them. He soon walked towards a near by egg and placed a hand over it. "Better start carrying girls. Its a long walk ahead."

The scene now returned to outside the maze and into the forest once more. Back up on the tree where Leonard was last seen, he was now shown to be standing on top of the branch with his right arm hugging on the tree's trunk. He held out his naginata with his free arm and was jabbing it forward.

"Grr. Take this!" Leonard roared as he thrusts his weapon forwards. His attack was easily avoided the large bird right in-front of him. The large bird was shown to have a glistening white feathered under side with a golden feathered back side. "Tsk." He grunted as the attack missed.

Letting out a loud squawk, the large bird pecked at Leonard with its sharp beak but he managed to barely dodge out of it. "Ha!" He yelled as he hit the birds neck with his knee. The attack hitting the bird caused it to let out a pained squawk. Leonard soon tried follow it up by slicing down on the bird's neck with his weapon but it managed to knock the weapon out of his hand by quickly slamming him on to the tree.

"Ahh...Dammit!" He cursed as he watched his weapon fall straight down to the ground. "Get off me!" Leonard elbowed the back of the birds neck with a powerful blow. The attacked worked for Leonard was no longer pinned against the tree but it only enraged the bird even more for it soon bit down on his arm and easily threw him off.

"Ahhh!" Leonard was falling fast into the ground and was about to fall to his death when the bird suddenly swooped down on him and caught him its large talons. The bird quickly flew back up and was now up above the tree tops in a matter of seconds before quickly diving down once more. It soon slammed and pinned Leonard hard against the same tree he was in seconds ago. The force of the hit was enough to cause the entire tree to shake.

With Leonard now pinned, the bird pulled him away and flew around the tree before dropping him into its nest. Leonard hitting the nest was enough for one of the eggs to bounce of the side and fall. The egg was quickly falling and was about to hit the ground when Nathan suddenly jumped in and caught it. He skidded on the grass before coming to a stop.

"Ugh...hurry up and shoot it Dylan!" Nathan ordered as he looked towards the gamer.

"I can't! I don't have a clear shot because of all the leaves and branches!" Dylan said back to him. He was shown to be holding up his rifle and was aiming it up the tree.

Back up into the tree, Leonard was shown groaning in pain with his eyes shut as he laid down on the nest. Slowly opening up his eyes he noticed the bird staring intensely at him close up. Moments later the bird pulled away from his face and was now towering over him with its large wings spread out. Leonard knew what was going to happen next and tried to escape but his body was pinned down by one of its talons. With no where else left to go now, he dropped his head back onto the nest and ceased his struggling.

Leonard let out a deep sigh, "Well, another failure on my end." He closed his eyes and waited for his final moment when a loud gun shot was heard firing. The pressure on his body soon lightened and heard a bunch of branches breaking before ending with a loud thud. Opening his eyes he saw that the bird was now gone.

"Hah! Told you I was a good shot!" Dylan was heard exclaiming from down below him. Leonard peeking over the side of the nest saw the bird dead right on the ground with Dylan standing triumphantly over it. Nathan was just standing right in-front of Dylan with small smile when he noticed Leonard looking down on them.

"Hey Leonard, are you okay up there?" Nathan called out to him with hands on placed on the sides of his mouth. Leonard just let out another heavy sigh.

"Yeah. Now get me the fuck down from here. We still have eggs to carry." He answered back at them. He soon sat up straight and leaned back on tree trunk. "What a drag. Failures all over my end."

(Confessional)

Dylan: Yeah boy! Have you seen that shot? I practically threaded the needle with that one. Haha! Man, using that rifle again felt real good but damn does that recoil suck. I can still feel my arms still shaking from that one. Now that we have an egg, I wonder what it would taste though?

Leonard: Man, I can't seem to get anything right. I keep being in the fore front of my old team's failures and now still doing the same for this new one. *sigh* I really need to step up my game now that I'm THIS close to hitting the merge before I can hit them back. Hard.

(End Confessional)

The scene now transitioned back to the cooking area where the two teams were waiting for their respective hunters. A few minutes had already passed with all of them looking up at a large holographic monitor floating right above Skell. The remaining time of the hunters was shown on the monitor.

"Man, what's taking them so long? We don't have a lot of time." Ginger asked no one in particular. She was shown waiting for her teammates anxiously on a table.

"We just have to trust in them. I'm sure they're on their way back here." Laren reassured her.

"I hope Kazuo found an egg in there or otherwise we're so screwed." Blake said to his team for he was fidgeting anxiously in anticipation.

"Don't worry, Blake. I'm sure we can trust in them. I mean, all three of them are from the same team before the team shuffle." Lucette said in a comforting tone. She had a warm smile on her face as well.

"H-hey, I th-think that's them o-over there." Phoebe said meekly to her team. Everyone looked towards the maze and saw Kazuo, Alice, and Janet slowly approaching. They all soon took notice of the two large eggs they were carrying. One egg was carried by both girls while Kazuo carried the other on his own.

"Hey there, team. Did you miss us?" Kazuo said with a playful grin. He then placed the large egg on the grass next to the table. Everyone gawked at the sheer size the egg. Alice and Janet soon placed there egg as well next to his.

"What the...what kind of eggs are these?" Blake asked in surprise while eyeing both eggs.

"You don't want to know." Janet answered instead.

"Yeah. You guys might hurl if all of you knew what made these." Alice added in. "And before you guys say anything, no, I'm not eating it." She said in a much more serious tone.

"Well, umm, okay..." The prankster now started to look a bit weary about them. He soon took a big gulp as he stared back at the eggs. "I hope I know how to cook these." He thought to himself

(Confessional)

Blake: Holy...those eggs are huge! They're as big as a fucking barrel for Pete's sake. How do you expect me to cook these?

(End Confessional)

A couple more minutes had passed with no signs of the other hunters near by. Everyone from the Golden Dawn Elves were waiting anxiously, and hungrily, for them to arrive. The other team were also waiting, albeit impatiently, for them as well for they were instructed not to cook yet by Skell until time was up.

"Hmm, there's only about a minute left before the time runs out. I'm guessing you guys are getting impatient, huh?" Skell said to the gold team with a wide grin. "Any later and you guys will be disqualified for the first round." He reminded. This got them even more worried.

A few seconds now passed and still no signs of them. The monitor soon started flashing red for each second that had passed the moment it hit the thirty second mark. With each passing blink the gold team started to feel the pressure stack on them.

"Come on, hurry up already." Ginger said to her self looking quite anxious. The others felt the same for they were just staring off into the forest. With only ten seconds remaining, Skell started to count it down.

"Ten..." He started. "Nine...eight...seven...six...five...four...three...tw-"

"WAIT!" Dylan was suddenly heard yelling, cutting Skell off. The camera now panning towards the forest shown Dylan running towards them with Nathan and Leonard trailing behind. All three of them were shown carrying something in their arms. As the hunters got close they all placed an egg each on the table before collapsing on the ground.

"Hey! Glad you guys can make it!" Skell greeted them. "Okay. Lets start cooking!" He exclaimed with a clap. "You guys can take as much time as you want to cook these eggs so no rush. I'll be judging you guys based on how good the food taste, okay? Okay!" He explained. "Oh, and hunters, you guys can rest up now. For once the judging ends you guys will be off hunting once more."

"Great...I'll be over by that tree over there to take a nap. Wake me up when its all done." Dylan announced to his team as he walked on away. The camera following him shown him collapsing by the base of a tree.

"Well, *gulps* here comes the hard part. Cooking these barrel sized eggs." Blake sighed as he attempted to carry on of the eggs. He felt how slimy and veiny the egg felt as he lifted it. "Dear god, this thing stinks." He struggled to carry it over to where the stove was.

"Let me help you with that." Lucette offered as she quickly rushed over to him. She placed her arms on the opposite side of the egg.

"Oh, umm, no need. I got this. Go and help the others with the other egg." Blake insisted of her to do.

"Now Blake. I'm your assistant for today. As such, it is my duty to help you out as much as I can." Lucette said to him with a proud smile. "And besides, I'm sure both Clint and Phoebe can handle the other one." Moments later, Phoebe's doll Savior walked up next to them and picked up the egg that was left behind. He easily carried it with one hand and suddenly grabbed the egg the two were carrying. It soon walked off towards the stove with ease.

Phoebe soon came rushing towards them soon after. "Oh, umm, I'm s-sorry. I didn't notice you t-two were already c-carrying the other egg w-when I asked Savior to go and h-help." She said in an apologetic tone.

"Its okay. Not a problem at all." Lucette answered back with a faked smile.

(Confessional)

Lucette: Aww, no fair! That was the best time for me to get close to Blake and Phoebe ruined it. I know Phoebe means well but come on that was my chance.

(End Confessional)

Over by the other kitchen area, the long table was already set up with all the equipment and other ingredients Paris needs to begin her cooking. She soon reached for a glass bowl and whisk and passed it to Gelsey who was standing right beside her.

"Here, Gelsey. I want you and Laren to crack open and beat these eggs for me." She instructed her to do. "Me and Ginger will be in-charge of slicing some of the vegies we have over here."

"Okay!" Gelsey exclaimed while giving her a salute. "Come on Laren. Lets get started."

"Yeah!" Laren answered back happily. Both of them soon got started with their task.

"Hey Paris, you haven't told us what we're even going to cook yet. How am I supposed to help you properly if I don't even know what were making?" Ginger questioned her.

"Oh, right. Hehe." Paris scratched the back of her head out of embarrassment. "I was so excited in cooking that I forgot to tell you guys. Whoops." She explained. "Anyways, were going to make something simple yet delicious. Vegetable omelets!"

"Vegetable omelets? Can we at least have something with a little more meat in it instead?" Ginger pouted.

"Now, now Ginger. I'm the head chef here." Paris reminded. "And besides, I'm sure you guys will love it!" She said proudly. "Especially since we have much more normal looking eggs." She started chuckling.

Ginger let out a deep sigh, "Fine." She soon grabbed a knife. "I trust you in this." She twirled the knife in her hand. "Now, tell me what to cut and I'll get it done fast."

Back at the Diamond team's kitchen area, Clint was shown searching through all the cabinets. He was bringing out everything that was inside each one of them but always had a disappointed look every time. Clint soon stopped searching the moment he emptied out the last cabinet. He turned to face Blake who was watching over him the whole time.

"Well?" The latter asked. The former just shook his head in response. "Tss, I see. Thanks." Blake said back. Clint soon got up and brushed the dirt off of his pants.

"So what now Blake? We don't have a large enough pan to cook these eggs." Lucette said to him with a worried look.

"I don't know. Things are not going as I'd hoped." Blake looked frustrated now. "If only we had the right equipment for this then we wouldn't be having so much trouble."

"Umm, what about if we ask Skell to give us a bigger pan?" Lucette suggested. "You think that would work?"

Blake shook his head, "I'm not so sure about that either. If anything, he might be just as lunatic as Chris is."

"Hey! I heard that!" Skell announced his presence to them. "And just so you know, I'm not anything like Chris." He crossed his arms at them.

"Skell? What are you doing here?" Blake asked him. Skell just waved him off.

"None of that matters for now." The co-host said dismissively. "What does matter is that I'm not anything like Chris is. Got that?"

"Okay..." Blake trailed off for he suddenly got an idea. "Fine. If you really aren't anything like Chris, why don't you give us a big enough pan to help cook these large eggs." The prankster said to him with a sly grin.

Skell let out a sigh, "Fine, but only this one time. Okay?" Blake gave him a nod in response. Pulling out his panel, Skell started inputting in commands and soon a very large frying pan appeared on the long table beside them.

"Yay! Thanks Skell! Now Blake can get started on his cooking!" Lucette exclaimed.

"Yeah, have fun with that. I'll be heading over to the other team to see their progress." Skell said before leaving them.

"Okay, now that we have our frying pan, its time to get this show on the road!" Blake tried lifting the large frying pan but it barely even budged. "Yeah...we need Phoebe for this..."

(Confessional)

Skell: See, I told you guys I'm nowhere compared to Chris. Just because I'm his "assistant" that doesn't mean I'm in any way comparable to him!

(End Confessional)

Back on over the gold team's cooking area, Skell was already by there walking around to see how much progress has been made on their breakfast. Paris was shown to be watching over their dish with a spatula in hand while the assistants were already cleaning up.

"Hey guys, how's the food cooking?" Skell said as he approached the other girls on the long table. He could already smell the omelet's invigorating scent from there.

"Oh, hey Skell! Things are going well as you can see!" Laren exclaimed as she took notice of him. She then pointed towards Paris who expertly flipped the omelet in her pan before setting it down.

"I see. So, what did you guys do exactly?" Skell questioned them further.

"Well, me and Gelsey did a great job in breaking open those eggs!" Laren beamed. "Isn't that right, Gelsey?" No response came from Gelsey for something was bothering her. She was shown to be gently cleaning the inside of a bowl with a piece of cloth. "Uhh, Gelsey?"

"Oh, umm, what did you say again?" Gelsey said as she snapped out of it.

"I just told Skell what you and me did a while ago." Laren explained to her. "And that we did a great job for our simple task." She added

"Oh, umm...I wouldn't put it that way to be exact. I mean we just cracked open a couple eggs." Gelsey said back to her. She looked a bit bothered about that notion.

"Oh come on, don't be to much of a pessimist. If you think positively about what we're doing then things will end up going are way!" Laren said to her to brighten up the mood.

"Okay fine. You got me there." Gelsey said with a small smile. "Lets just see if what you say is true." She giggled. Laren started to giggle a bit as well.

"Okay...anyways, how about you Ginger?" The co-host asked the last of the three assistants.

"Oh, me? Well, I just diced up a couple veggies for the omelet. No biggie." She said with a confident grin across her face. She attempted to twirl a knife as well but it fell straight onto the table causing it to clang out for a bit. "Oops. Hehe..." She scratched the back of her head in embarrassment.

"Okay then, that's all. Just signal when food is done cooking, okay?" Skell now said to them. All three girls nodded at him. He soon left the kitchen area and walked away off-screen

(Confessional)

Gelsey: Okay, look. I sort of made a slight oopsy when cracking open the eggs. I accidentally dropped one of the eggs in the bowl and it broke open...along with the bottom of the bowl cracking. I tried to scoop out all the broken shells while no one is looking but I'm not sure if I got them all out. I just hope it doesn't affect the omelet to much.

(End Confessional)

The time skipped to a couple minutes ahead after leaving the teams to do their own cooking. After a while of waiting, both sides had already completed their breakfast for the day's challenge. Skell, the one who's taste testing there food first, was seated behind a round clothed table in between the two kitchen areas. A complete set of silver wear and a plate was laid out on the table for him.

"Okay, now that everyone's done cooking, its time for the judging to commence!" Skell exclaimed. "Now, before we begin, Blake, heads or tails?" He asked the prankster.

"Umm, heads?" Blake tilted his head a bit.

"That means Paris gets tails then." Skell brought out a coin. He soon tossed it in the air before catching it right after. He looked at it to see what result he got. "And it's heads! Blake, you're up first!" He announced.

"Oh, umm, okay." Blake turned towards Phoebe who was behind him. "Phoebe, can you get that doll of yours to carry the pan again, please?" He asked her.

"Um o-okay." She meekly answered. Phoebe then faced towards the stove where her doll was standing idly by with the large pan still on top of it. She gave it a couple commands and soon the doll carried the pan in one hand and started walking towards Skell's table. Phoebe followed right after him.

As the two got close, Savior placed the large pan on the table without clearing it out first. The plate shattered underneath the pan while the silver wear were being flattened right under it.

"Oh my god, I'm s-sorry about that." The doll faced girl quickly apologized. Skell just waved her off.

"Its okay, Phoebe." Skell said reassuringly. He brought out his panel, placed in a couple commands and soon a cart filled with various plates and silver wear appeared right beside him. "See." He smiled at her. Phoebe was still embarrassed to look at him. "Anyways, lets see what you guys whipped up- Dear god! The fucks that!?"

On the large frying pan was a giant sunny side-up but it looked off putting and unappealing then normal. The egg white was a shade of bloody red with black splotches while the yolk being a bright orange. Dark-red vein-like lines lined the egg white leading up all the way to the center.

"What creature did you guys get this egg from?!" Skell asked. He looked towards Blake back at his team's kitchen area.

"I don't know. Kazuo didn't tell us!" Blake answered. "Ask him that!"

"Okay, where is he then?" The co-host now asked. Blake pointed towards the forest where Kazuo was shown sitting under a tree. He was just abiding his team by studying his spell book. "Hey Kazuo!" Skell called out to him.

Kazuo heard his call and looked up from his book. "Hey! You need something?" He responded.

"Yeah. Quick question; what kind of eggs are these?" Skell now asked. Kazuo just started chuckling. "What's so funny?"

"You really want to know?" Kazuo had a wide grin on his face. "Well, if you must know, there either Gorgon or Gargoyle eggs. We found a whole nest of them with some of them hatching right in-front of me. Have fun!" He started to chuckle manically. Skell's eyes widened as he heard this.

"Gorgon? What's a Gorgon?" Lucette tilted her head in confusion. Blake, who was standing right beside her, had an uneasy look on his face.

"You don't want to know." Blake said with an uneasy tone.

Skell, who looked very concerned for his sake, took in a big gulp for he knew what got himself into. Slowly grabbing a fork from the tray beside him, he started to poke the egg's yolk. The yolk burt and dark orange goop started spreading all over the egg.

"Oh god..." He commented before slicing off a piece. Skell lifted the piece he had cut off with his fork and noticed web-like strands hanging from the sides. "Well...heh...bottoms up..." Skell looked at the piece with some hesitation before bringing it up to his mouth. Taking in another gulp, he closed his eyes and shoved it all in his mouth.

"Please let this be good." Skell thought to himself as he chewed it. After a while of chewing it slowly he soon swallowed. Silence filled the air for a good few seconds causing the Diamond team to tense up a bit. Moments later Skell opened up his eyes and looked at the egg once more. He placed his fork on to one side and looked towards the team.

"Well, that was *clears throat* interesting to say the least." Skell commented. The Diamond team felt at ease for bit. "However." He said suddenly. This caused Blake to flinch. "For the most part, it was well cooked and made I have to say. You did a good job on that one, Blake." He said with a smile.

Hearing this earned Blake a sigh of relief. "Man, you had me worried there for a second. Hehe..." He said to him.

"Glad you did well Blake!" Lucette exclaimed happily. "Now we just need to wait and see if our food tastes better then theirs."

"Oh contrair." Paris interjected as she she walked up to Skell's table with a plate in hand. "I doubt Blake's horror show of an egg would beat my superb cooking skill." She said with confidence in her voice. "Now please, get this excuse of a breakfast out of the way for my cooking. That means you Phoebe." She pointed towards Phoebe.

"Oh, umm, o-okay..." She answered meekly. "S-Savior, can you umm g-get this pan out of the w-way, please?" She asked her doll. A few moments later, her doll started to move and lifted the pan up revealing the mess that was left underneath. Both her and Savior walked away off-screen now.

"Hmm, this won't do." Paris shook her head. "Girls. Please clear the table from this 8mess." She snapped her fingers. Gelsey soon walked up after a few seconds. She then pulled the cloth off of the table and started waving it in the air. All the mess that was on the cloth soon scattered and landed on the grass. She returned the table cloth neatly back on the table.

"Thank you, Gelsey." Paris thanked her. Gelsey smiled and soon walked away off-screen.

"You do know I could've done that myself, right?" Skell said to her.

"If I allowed that then it wouldn't look good for the reviews now would it." Paris said with a small smile as she started to giggle a bit. Skell started to chuckle lightly as well.

"Whatever you say Paris." Skell said jokingly. "Anyways, are you just going to stand there and pose with that food in your hand or feed it to me?" He said rhetorically. "I know there's a term called a feast for the eyes but I'd rather have a feast that I can actually taste." He added.

With a smug look, she placed her plate down on the table. Everyone was soon taken aback when they saw how well prepared and designed the omelet was. Mustard and Ketchup lined the sides of the plate in an alternating swirling fashion with some of it going on top of the omelet itself. A single piece of mint laid on top of it to top of the dish.

"Damn...the presentation of this egg looks so different from the horror show of an egg Blake did." Skell commented as he marveled at how well made the omelet looked. Lets see if this thing tastes as good as it looks." He then grabbed a different fork from the cart.

With a quick hand motion Skell was able to easily slice a piece of the omelet with his fork. The egg was cooked just right that it was soft enough to slice through without exerting to much effort. As Skell pulled away his piece, strings of melted cheese came stretching it out before detaching itself.

"Hmm, I see you added some cheese." Skell noted. "And by the looks of it, it seems you used mozzarella based on its consistency. Nice touch I have to say." He commented. This made Paris more confident about her cooking.

"Thank you." Paris said back.

"Well, bottoms up." Skell said while raising the piece up with his fork. Shoving it in his mouth now he soon got a good taste of it. "Man, this is good." He started to chew on his food now, savoring every little taste he could find. After a short while of enjoyment of his food he suddenly stopped when he felt a crunch in his mouth. A look of surprise suddenly formed from face for something wasn't right.

"Uhh, anything wrong, Skell?" Paris asked him. Concern was already wrapping around her face as she looked at his expression. Moments later Skell spitted out his food. Everyone from the Gold team was surprised to see this. Gelsey felt especially pressured for she figured it out right away as to why.

"Ugh...I'm sorry Paris." Skell shook his head solemnly. "As good as it was initially, I have to be objective with the judging and as such I can't let something as that out of place piece pass. I'm sorry." He said in a sad tone.

"What do you mean? What could you have possibly found in my food so bad?" Paris started questioning him now with a worried look.

"Well, I found an object in the food while chewing. It didn't feel quite right with the food so I spat it out. I can only assume it was an egg shell though." Skell now explained to her. "And for a person with such prestige as yourself, you do know how bad something like that is, right? Especially if its from a well established place."

Paris hearing his words felt a bit saddened and depressed by this. A sad look was casted upon her face but didn't seem to be noticeable for she kept up a weary smile. She let out a deep sigh, "I see, well, nothing much I can do now. I'll take my leave." She said before walking off back to her team.

"I'm sorry to hear that your cooking failed, Paris." Laren said in a comforting tone. Paris didn't say anything as she sat down on a chair next to the table.

"It's okay. There's still two more rounds. We just got really unlucky is all. We can still bounce back from this." Paris now said to them. She still felt a bit saddened by this. "We just need to be really careful about our preparations, okay?"

Everyone nodded at her at the same time in response. Gelsey though, felt a bit heavy on herself from seeing Paris' sad look.

(Confessional)

Paris: Dammit! I shouldn't have been careless about my cooking. If I only double checked then ingredients carefully then this would have been a clean sweep for us! *lets out a deep breath* Its okay though. I won't let it get to me. There is still two more rounds and I'm sure Blake won't be able to out best me!

Gelsey: Oh my god, after seeing how down Paris was I just couldn't bare to see her being all sad and stuff. I knew I should've confessed but I was to afraid that they might get angry at me and possibly vote me out if we ended up losing. Hopefully we could win the next two rounds so that that little mishap wouldn't need to be brought up once more and it would be my own little secret. I just have to think positive, right?

(End Confessional)

The camera now panned back to Skell's dining table. He was already standing up right behind it and was about to announce something.

"Well, after taste testing the food that was given, I finally made a decision." Skell announced. "After all things considered. The winners of the breakfast round is Blake and his team. Congratulations." He said to the winning team with a small smile. The aforementioned team started to cheer at this.

"Yay! I can't believe we won that round!" Lucette said while jumping in joy.

"Yeah. I really can't believe it as well." Blake said back to her in a happier tone.

"Hmm, not bad. Though I could've made something better but oh well." Kazuo shrugged.

"Hmph. Doubt it." Alice shot him down.

"You just got lucky there, Blake. I'll make sure to blow away the judges in the next two rounds." Paris declared to him with new found determination after last round.

"Yeah! You can do it Paris!" Laren cheered her on.

"Can we end this round and eat already? I'm still starving here!" Leonard growled at them

"Now that he mentioned it, I do feel a bit famished after all that running and watching." Nathan chimed in with a much calmer tone. Everyone now felt the same after they mentioned about eating.

"Fine. Fine. I'll let you guys eat the breakfast you all whipped up." Skell now said to them. "Except for Paris and her team. Since they lost the round they will have to eat this instead." With a flick of his fingers his panel soon appeared. After inputting in a couple commands a bad full of plain bread appeared on their table. "Enjoy. I'll be back in an hour." He said before flickering out of the virtual world.

With the contestants now all alone, they all gathered around their respective team's table with their food now all set. The Diamond team all started chowing down on their egg while the Gold team was preparing their own individual sandwiches to eat.

"Well, at least this round isn't a total lost." Gelsey silently muttered to herself.

(Confessional)

Blake: *burps* Man, that egg was huge that we were barely able to finish it all. Good thing it didn't taste as half-bad as I imagined it to be. For the most part it tasted like any normal egg. I got to wonder though, how do they program stuff such as taste in the first place? Now that is some matrix shit right there now that I think about it.

Lucette: Mmmm. Blake isn't a bad cook now that I got to taste it. If me and Blake ever end up being together then maybe I won't have to worry about learning how to cook hehe.

Kazuo: For a prankster he sure can cook. It may not be the best meal but it'll have to do. The choices I made so far sure did reveal a few hidden things about our teammates. Though Alice did play a good part in this for constantly opposing me even though we're in an alliance together. Now that I think about it, will Alice still be with me in our little deal now that we are in a different team? Or will she bail on me now that there are more to our name? This second half just got a whole lot more interesting for me. *grins*

(End Confessional)

The scene now jumped to an hour ahead to where everyone was shown cleaning up and fixing their stations for the next round. Skell was already standing between the two teams with a notable grin on his face. As the last contestant finished up with their cleaning, Skell soon spoke up.

"So, did everyone enjoy their breakfast?" Skell asked. Mixed responses came from the contestants. Some enjoyed it some didn't but majority felt neutral towards it. "Well, either way, I hope the hunters had their fill for the next hunt will require a whole lot of patience. For you see, our main ingredient for the lunch round...is...seafood!" He announced. "Feel excited? I know I am!"

"Of course you'll be excited. You're not the one doing the dirty work." Leonard glared at him.

"Cool it, Jag. We're already down by one round, we don't need to make a scene." Dylan scolded him. Leonard just scoffed back at him.

"F-fishing huh? We are not going to be stranded in a large body of water, right?" Alice asked. She was lightly trembling at the thought but no one seemed to notice much.

"Why? Afraid to get your hair wet?" Kazuo gave her a sly grin. Alice just waved him off.

"Shut it!" She said to him dismissively.

"Hey, Skell. If we are going to fish for our next main ingredient. Where are our fishing gear then?" Janet asked. "How do you expect us to fish without them?" She added.

"You guys got weapons and magic right?" Skell asked her first. Janet nodded in response. "Well, to put it bluntly, use them." He answered.

"What about fishing spots then? Where are we supposed to start fishing?" Nathan now asked as well.

"Good question." The co-host pointed towards him. "There are two spots you guys can choose to fish from." He signed the number two with his hand. "You guys can head north towards the mountains to find a large fresh water lake or head south until you reach a beach to start fishing in more deeper waters." He pointed out to them. "Also, you guys only have about three hours to finish this time." He added.

"Hunters. Since the Diamond team won last round, they're going to choose where to go first." Skell now explained to them. "Now, Diamond hunters, make your choice.

"Hmm, we get to choose where to go first huh?" Janet repeated. "What do you two think?" She asked them.

"Well, why don't we-" Kazuo said before getting cut off

"We head south. End of story." Alice interjected before Kazuo could finish. She looked and sounded very serious about it.

"Why there though? We would have to reach deeper waters if want a chance to actually catch some big fish." Janet argued.

"Who says seafood has to be fish? Crabs are counted as seafood to you know?" Alice said with a very serious look. Janet just let out a sigh and gave in.

"Fine, but if things head south other than us then you'll know what happens next, got that?" Janet said looking serious now as well.

"Yeah. Yeah. Now lets go. We're wasting opportunities the more we stay here." Alice said before leaving. Janet followed suit.

"Okay. Well, we're off now. Bye!" Kazuo waved back at everyone before following them into the forest. All three of them soon disappeared from view.

"Well, thats that I guess. That only means the Gold team's hunters are going north for their catch." Skell announced to them. "Do you three have any questions before you all go?" He now asked the remaining hunters. All three of them just shook their heads.

"Good. I'll be seeing you three back here in three hours then." The co-host reminded them.

"Well, lets go." Dylan said as he left first. The other two followed soon after.

"Good luck guys!" Laren waved them off.

(Confessional)

Alice: *sigh* Fine. The only reason why I insisted on going to the beach is because I can't stand being near large bodies of water. I just feel very uncomfortable being close to one.

Janet: For her sake, Alice better hope what she says is right. Otherwise she'll find herself dropping this competition tonight.

(End Confessional)

The scene now transitioned to the southern part of the forest. The diamond team's hunters were just silently walking on by with none of them wanting to start a conversation. Low hanging vines and branches were the only things stopping them for the most part of their journey but otherwise it was very uneventful.

After a few more minutes had passed with them just walking through the forest in silence, the trees and foliage all around start to slowly diminish. Moments later, the hunters found themselves in an open field with little to no greenery all around them. The sound of waves crashing along the shore soon echoed throughout the place signifying that the sea was close. Soon, a sandy, white opening was shown ahead of them with crystal-blue waters just passed it

"Guys, we're almost their!" Janet pointed out to them for she was walking ahead of the other two.

"Great! I've been itching to do something other than walking!" Kazuo exclaimed. "Its either that or the insect bites." He shrugged.

"Lets make it quick. The less time we spend here the better." Alice said with a scowl on her face.

A few seconds later, all three of them managed to make it to the beach. The sea breeze whistled throughout the area accompanied by the steady beat of the waves crashing along the shore. The sound birds squawking also filled the area.

"Wait, are those actual seagulls up there?" Kazuo pointed out towards the sea. The two girls soon looked towards where he pointed to. "And why are they flocking around there for?"

Alice hearing this suddenly felt a slight chill pressuring down on her neck. "Umm, guys? I think we should back away from this place." She said looking a bit worried.

"Why? The seagulls just probably found a large school of fish to feed on is all." Janet said turning around to face her. Moments later the sound of water erupting was heard behind her. "Huh?" She turned back around to see a large pincer reaching out from underneath the water. Seconds later the body soon came rushing out to reveal itself to be one large monstrous crab.

"Holy...how the fuck are we supposed to deal with that?!" Janet said looking quite shocked with what she saw.

"Yeah. I mean, how are we going to bring that back to the others?" Kazuo said to them.

The giant sea creature soon took notice of the trio on the beach and started moving towards them. Giant waves formed and crashed along the shore with each step it takes.

"What now, Alice? You're the one who wanted to go crab hunting!" Janet now asked her. Alice didn't say or do anything for she had a horrid look on her face as she watched the waves crashing and splashing all over. "We're doomed."

The scene now changed to the opposite side of the forest where the gold team's hunters are. All three of them were shown to be standing by the edge of a large lake. Clear, fresh waters fill the lake with the sun beaming down on it to give it that sparkly look.

"Now that we are here, what's the plan now?" Nathan asked his other two companions.

"Well, since we don't have any fishing rods, there is only one option left really if we want to catch something." Dylan answered him while taking off his helm. "We'll just have to do it the old fashioned way; spear fishing." He raised up his sword.

"Hmph. More like sword fishing." Leonard rolled his eyes at them. He chuckled slightly afterwards.

"Why don't you just shoot the fish instead with your rifle?" Nathan suggested as he motioned towards Dylan's case.

"I would but I doubt the fishes would remain intact after getting shot once. This thing packs way to much of a punch." Dylan reasoned. He soon removed the front half of his armor exposing a fitted dark blue shirt underneath. The back half fell off seconds later. "Anyways, lets hurry on up and start fishing. The sooner we get a catch the sooner we get to eat."

"Fine. Just give me a minute to remove some of my stuff first." Nathan replied as he took off his robe first.

"Yeah, no." Leonard objected. "I did all the work and risked my life last time while you two watched so its my turn to do the same." He crossed his arms.

"Ugh, fine. At least act as our spotter and watch out for anything dangerous. Can you at least do that?" Dylan asked of him. Leonard just rolled his eyes and scoffed but still agreed to it with a nod. "Good. Now wait a sec, I still have to remove my armor."

After a short while both Dylan and Nathan were already done taking off their clothing. The former was just left wearing boxers while the latter was wearing only his pants with the legs folded up above his knees. Both of them were shown to be already in the water moving around by the shallowest parts in search for a potential catch. The water was already up to their knees as they searched.

"You see anything over there?" Dylan called out to him while still searching from his end.

"Not much yet!" Nathan answered. "Should we try searching through the deeper parts of the lake? They might be swimming around there." He suggested.

"Hmm not yet. We don't know what might be lurking around there yet so keep searching by the shallows." Dylan argued.

"Okay."

After a couple minutes of the two just searching around the shallow parts of the lake nothing has yet to appear to them suitable for a catch. So far in their search only a few small fishes were the only things being seen swimming past them. Both of them soon ended up walking around the lake until both of them met up on the other side.

"Hmm, not much luck." Dylan shook his head in disappointment. "So far only tiny fishes are the only thing I've been spotting." He crossed his arms

"Same here." Nathan said with a nod. "Maybe we should try the deeper parts now? I did spot a few silhouettes of larger fish closer to the center." He recalled.

"Fine. We don't have much of a choice now." Dylan agreed. Both of them soon started walking towards the center of the lake. With each step they took the water started rising and rising. Leonard, still watching over them, soon took notice of an eel-like creature quickly erupting from the ground underwater heading straight towards them from his side of the lake.

"Hey guys. Get out of there quick! Something is heading your way!" Leonard yelled at them.

Both of them at this point were already chest deep in water when they heard his call. As they looked towards him they soon took notice of the creature swimming swiftly towards them. Nathan managed to safely get back to land for his ability to dash made it easier for him. Dylan though was still in the water with the creature now getting in close.

"Hurry!" Nathan urged him.

Dylan doing his best to keep on treading through the deep parts of the water managed to make it back to where the water was below his waist. Being able to move faster, he started to run as best as he could. With the gamer now getting closer to dry land he was about to get into safety when suddenly the eel burst out of the water and lunged towards him with its mouth gaping wide open. The eel now out of the water looked way larger than it did underwater.

"AAAH!" Dylan screamed as the eel bit down on him from the back of his neck. He was soon forced to go underwater with eel still biting down on him. A mix of both blood and water were splashing around as Dylan struggled to get back to surface.

"Dylan!" Nathan rushed back into the water with his katana on the ready but as soon as he got close to the thrashing another set of sharp teeth suddenly bit down on his right ankle and started dragging him down as well. "Shit! Ahhh...Leonard...help!" Nathan called out just before the other eel dragged him down underneath the water.

"Dammit!" Leonard cursed as he quickly rushed towards them. In a matter of seconds he had already reached the other side of the lake where the two were but as soon as he got there both thrashings suddenly stopped. "Guys?" He called out to them with worried tone. No response or movement came.

After a few seconds of dead silence had passed a bright flickering suddenly started from underneath the water showing that one of them had already died. A silhouette of a body floating up from underneath the bloody water soon appeared right after. As it floated back to the surface it was facing down making it unrecognizable. A second later two large eels sprung up from the water and dragging the body down with them underneath. A bright flicker happened moments later.

"Fuck this! I'm getting out of here!" Leonard started running back towards the kitchen area.

(Confessional)

Dylan: Dammit, those eels really took us by surprise. Lying in wait until we were out of our safe zone. If only we were better equipped then it would have been a great catch.

Leonard: *sigh* What a drag. Another failure under my belt. I really couldn't stand this anymore! First I've been failing a lot on my old team now I'm failing still on this new team. I really wonder why things haven't bee going my way lately.

(End Confessional)

The scene now returned to the beach. Kazuo, Alice, and Janet were still in the middle in fighting off the giant crab monster. Arrows and magic were sent flying every where in attempt to damage the creature but was to no use for it barely scratched the crabs tough outer shell. The crab retaliated back at them by swinging and slamming its large pincers around but the hunters all managed to either dodge or block it every time.

"Alice watch out!" Janet warned as the crab slammed its pincer on the beach launching torrents of sand towards her.

Alice seeing no way to get out of the attack just crossed her arms with her bow at the front and braced herself. As the sands draw close a barrier of ice suddenly appeared right in front of her shielding her from the sands. Looking around now she saw Kazuo casting the spell from far behind her. A noticeable grin was wrapped all around his face.

"Hmm, didn't expect that to work." Kazuo said still grinning. Alice just ignored him and took off into a much safer area next to Janet.

"What now? I don't think there is a way we could possibly kill this. Its shell is way to hard to crack!" Alice said to her.

"I don't know either." Janet shook her head. "I could possibly deal with this if only this spear of mine would trigger its effect but for some reason it wouldn't." She reasoned.

"Obviously because you haven't done anything heroic or righteous yet." Alice pointed out to her plainly.

"What do you mean? I'm helping you guys, right? Isn't that righteous enough? Helping people!" Janet argued back. Alice was about to say something back at her but was interrupted when Kazuo approached.

"Hey girls, I don't mean to intrude but something is up with our food." Kazuo interjected as he approached then. Both girls looking towards the crab saw that it retreating back to the ocean.

"Umm, why is it leaving?" Janet asked as she watched the crab slowly descend underwater. The crab was soon hidden beneath the water with only bubbles popping from where it was last seen. "Should we be worried?" She said looking quite nervous.

A few seconds had passed with all three of them just watching and waiting for something to come up. Thinking that it might be over all three of them just dropped there stances with Kazuo turning his back immediately right after.

"I guess that's that." He said with a grin. As he was about to leave, the water started to ripple and churn. Before all three of them could react, a strong blast of water swept them off of their feet and flooded the shore. All of the water soon came rushing back to the ocean with only Alice being seen getting dragged along with it.

"Ah!...help!." Alice pleaded for she was panicking all over the place. Moving her head around she noticed that the two were no longer in sight with the beach far into the distance. Taking in quick and steady breaths in attempt to calm herself down, she tried to swim back but found herself not being able to.

As she gave it her all to make it back to safety, she soon felt the water rise suddenly from behind her. Turning her head around she saw the monstrous crab rising out of the ocean towering over her with both pincers raised. Alice just watched on in horror for she knew it was her end for there was nowhere left for her to go. The crab slamming both pincers down on her was the last thing she saw before her consciousness faded.

After a quick moment of darkness Alice soon felt she was lying down on soft grass. Opening her eyes she saw Kazuo looking down on her with the same grin he always had. Standing behind him was Janet who had her arms crossed.

"Glad you could make it back, Alice." Kazuo greeted her. Alice now quickly rose up from her position and saw she was back at the cooking area. She also noticed the gold team's hunters, minus Leonard, was back there as well.

"Why are we back here?" Alice questioned him. Kazuo just gave her a shrug.

"I can give you the answer to that." Skell's voice was suddenly heard. The co-host soon materialized standing in the midst of everybody. "The answer is simple really. Once you die you get sent back here."

"Okay, but what happens then? Do we get to continue our hunt?" Alice questioned him further.

"That's correct! If you have the time at least." Skell looked at the timer above them. "And by the looks of it you don't have enough time to even get half-way to your fishing spots."

"What happens to Jag though? He's still alive and isn't back here yet." Nathan now asked. "Also, what happens to our old clothes and items though? I remember leaving these things back at the lake."

"Yeah, I'm wondering about that as well." Dylan chimed in as he inspected himself.

"Well, for the first question, its up to him really. He either goes back or press on." Skell answered. As if on cue, Leonard soon appeared from the brushes to join them. "And I think he already made his choice." He chuckled slightly. "As for the second question. Your old items despawn and you'll get to respawn with a new similar set. This is applicable to any scenario actually." He explained to them.

"So what now though? Since both hunters failed what happens then? Do we still get to cook?" Paris now started questioning Skell.

"Yeah! Don't go telling us we'll have to starve out this round!" Ginger added in. Almost everyone seemed to have agreed with her.

"Well, that's exactly it, you all get to eat anything for the this round until the dinner round in a few hours.. Meaning, this is a loss for both teams." Skell said to them. Everyone groaned after hearing this. "Also, no consolation prizes for this round as well since no one had anything to show." He added. Everyone felt even more down from this.

"Great! Just great. First we failed both rounds and now we have to starve. Can this day get any better?" Leonard crossed his arms.

"Lighten up, Leonard. Its only for a few hours. I'm sure Paris can cook up something grand for tonight!" Laren said to him to cheer him up. "Right, Paris?"

"Yeah! I'll make sure to win the next round to secure ourselves!" Paris declared.

"Aww. This sucks. We don't get to eat anything until dinner time." Lucette pouted. "What are we supposed to do until then though?"

"I don't know. Maybe Skell will allow us to do our own hunting until then." Blake answered her.

"H-hunting on m-my own?" Phoebe shivered. "I d-don't think I can h-handle that."

"Don't worry to much about it, Phoebe. I'm sure we can find away to get around this!" Janet comforted her by patting her head.

The open field was soon filled with everyone talking. Skell soon interrupted them to get their attention by clearing his throat.

"Okay. Anyways, you guys can have the rest of the afternoon to do your own things until the dinner round starts." Skell flicked his fingers causing a neon portal to appear behind him. "I'll be leaving this portal behind for you guys to take so that you may all head on back to the real world if any of you wants." He explained. "Just don't think about eating there. I told Chef to lock away all the food until tomorrow. Well, bye!" Skell waved at them before entering the portal himself.

Back in the real world, the co-host had managed to get out of his pod. He let out a yawn and stretched out his arms when his phone started to ring. Picking it up, he soon spoke to the person calling him.

"Hello?" Skell said to the phone. "Chris? What's taking you so long!...Confessional booth? Now? But why?...Okay. Okay. No need to nag me about it." He soon walked out of the building with his phone still on.

(Confessional)

Skell's phone: *the phone was attached to a speaker* Hey there everyone! Chris here! Now, I know all of you are all thinking why I'm not hosting today's challenge and its because I was supposed to bring in two special guests for both today and tomorrow but one of them was to difficult to get a hold off. Right now I'm just waiting for a reply from one of them before I can get back over there. Hopefully they'll agree so that tomorrow's challenge will be an exciting one! Anyways, that's all I wanted to say. Now get that idiot over here to pick up his phone.

(End confessional)

* * *

(Cabin 2: Kazuo and Nathan's)

A few hours left before the final round would begin, Kazuo is shown to be laying down on his bed with both arms underneath his head. He was just deep in thought while staring straight at the ceiling above him. Underneath him was Nathan who had chosen to take a nap before the next challenge.

Silence filled the room between them with only the sound of their wall clock ticking was the only thing to be heard. A few quiet moments had passed when a knock on the door was suddenly heard by Kazuo

"Who is it?" Kazuo sat up straight.

"Kazuo, its just me, Skell, Chris called and said he wanted to have a word with you." Skell's voice was heard saying from outside. The former, looking quite curious, dropped down from his bed and opened the door.

"Hey Skell!" Kazuo greeted. "I haven't seen Chris all day. Where is he then?" He said while looking around him.

"Chris isn't her per se but there is a phone in the confessional booth where you can talk to him." Skell explained. "Hurry on up though since he also needs to talk to somebody else."

"Okay." Kazuo said before leaving.

(Confessional)

Kazuo: *is on the phone* Hey! Its been a while, hasn't it?...Yeah, I'm doing fine. This season was sure filled with a lot of interesting outcomes. Well, for me at least hehe. *giggling was heard from the other line* So, why did Chris decide for me to come and chat with you...A secret? Oh come on, after all of those times we've been together you are still keeping secrets from me? Can you at least give me a hint?...Pretty please...Okay fine. It was nice talking to you again though. Bye! *hangs up* Hmm, now I'm starting to wonder why Chris made me talk to that person specifically.

(End confessional)

As Kazuo exited the confessional booth he soon saw Phoebe walking towards him. Curious as to why she was here, he approached her.

"Hey there, Phoebe! You going to make a confessional as well?" The former asked.

"Oh, umm, h-hey Kazuo. N-not really. I'm just here b-because Skell said C-Chris wanted to t-talk to me." The latter explained. Kazuo looked very intrigued after hearing this from her.

"Interesting. Well, good luck to you then." Kazuo gave her a pat on the shoulder with a smile. He soon walked away right after.

(Confessional)

Phoebe: *is on the phone* H-hello?...Oh, umm, hey, yeah, its been a while...Y-yeah, I'm still d-doing good. The p-people here are n-nice as well...yeah, I was surprised as well. Th-they decided for m-me to join another s-season so here I am...Y-yeah, okay, umm, bye. *hangs up* Hmm, that w-was nice of C-Chris to let me t-talk to an old friend again.

(End confessional)

A few more hours had passed and everyone was already gathered back in the virtual world. The virtual sky is in a shade of bright orange to show that it was already late in the afternoon.

"Now that everyone is back, its time for the third and final round: Dinner!" Skell exclaimed. Everyone didn't feel way to excited about this. "For the final main ingredient our hunters would be scouring for will be-"

"Hold on for a second." Chris' voice suddenly echoed cutting Skell off. Everyone looking around the place found someone materializing in from behind Skell. After a few moments the materialization process had finaly completed to reveal it to be Chris. "I'll be taking over this final round."

"Hey! You can't simply take over just like that!" The former complained. The latter just gave him chuckled at him lightly with smug.

"Of course I can! I'm the main host after all! Am I not?" Chris asked rhetorically. Skell just grumbled something to himself. "Whats that? I couldn't quite catch that."

"Its nothing." Skell shook his head. "Now, if you guys don't mind, I'll be sitting under that tree over there." He said before walking away from everybody. "I swear, this is the second time he took the spotlight from me." He grumbled to himself while walking off.

"Okay. Anyways, before I begin the final round, hunters please stand aside from your teams." Chris commanded them. All the hunters were now standing off to the sides. "Good." He flicked his fingers and soon a large barrier separated both the hunters and Skell from everyone else. All of the contestants were surprised to see this.

"Chris? What are you doing?" Ginger asked. She had both her hands on her holsters and looked like she was about to draw them.

"Don't worry to much about it, Ginger. Its just for precautionary measures." Chris said with a grin. "For you see, we will all be having some minotaur outback for our final round!" Chris exclaimed.

As if on cue, thundering footsteps was suddenly felt shaking the ground below them. The sound of leaves rustling and branches breaking accompanied the footsteps as it got closer and closer. Everyone looking around to see where the beast would be coming from soon took notice of the trees right behind them to be shaking wildly. Moments later the minotaur soon burst into scene from the forest in a rampant furry while wielding a large jewel encrusted battle axe.

"RAAAWR." The beast roared as it swung its weapon around. It glared at the hunters while huffing madly at them.

"Eeep!" Phoebe shrieked as she ducked under the table. Savior stood over her with both his weapons on the ready.

"Its okay Phoebe. I'm sure this barrier was made to protect us." Lucette said to her in comforting tone to try and calm her down. Chris was soon heard laughing a bit maniacally.

"I hate to burst your bubble but this barrier only has a limited capacity on how many hits it can take before getting shattered." The host grinned deviously at them. "Good luck!" He said before flickering out of the virtual world.

"Well...lets hope our hunters can get the job done. Otherwise that bull is going to make a meal out of us." Blake said to his team.

"Hmph. At least that's something we can agree on." Paris said after over hearing him.

Outside the barrier all six hunters stood in defensive stances while staring back at the beast in anticipation for its first move. After a short while the minatour soon engaged on them first by swinging down its large axe on the diamon team's hunters first.

"Look out!" Alice warned them before jumping off to the side. Kazuo and Janet did the same and were both able to move out of the way causing the swing to miss and land in-between both of them.

"Hmm, that was close." Kazuo commented.

The minatour let out another loud roar before swinging his axe now towards the other hunters.

"Woah!" Dylan managed to roll forward and out of the axe's way. Leonard and Nathan didn't do the same for the former just dropped down to his chest while the latter jumped backwards. Take this!" Dylan followed up his roll with a spinning slash to its left leg the moment he got back up. The minatour roared out in pain as some blood started to drip out from its wound.

"Hah!" Leonard drove the naginata's blade into the beast's knee. This caused the minatour to cry out even more but didn't falter. The beast tried to smash down on Leonard with its free arm but stopped when flames started bombarding its face.

"Don't you forget us about now." Kazuo grinned. He then casted another spell to create a rocky pillar to hit ghe minatour at an angle causing it to get knocked back. While the beast was still staggering, Nathan took this opportunity to quickly run up the pillar and jumped off of the top. He used his momentum to slash down on the beast's chest with his katana. With a large cut wound exposed, Janet threw her spear with a lot of added force to impale it onto its chest and instantly pulling it back out right.

"RAAWR!" The minatour roared from the top of its lungs with both arms flexed. It soon started to trample and thrash around while swinging its axe wildly. The hunters did their best to avoid getting smashed by the beast while retaliating back with every chance they got.

"Ha!" Alice shot an arrow hitting the back of the minotaur's left shoulder after ducking under a tail swing. The minotaur groaned and turned back around to deliver a crushing blow with its fist but was blocked by a prismatic barrier that held off the attack. The barrier bursted into shards immediately right after with all of them striking the minotaur all at once causing it to roar out in pain.

"Heh, saved you there." Kazuo smiled. Alice just scoffed and ran off to a safer position. "Aww, not even a thanks?" He frowned.

The minotaur now covered in cuts and bruises just brushed it all off. Tucking in his head down low, the minotaur charged towards Kazuo like a bull with it's horns pointing forwards. Kazuo managed to move out of the way of the attack but this caused the minotaur to ram into the barrier protecting the others instead. The horns managed to pierce through with large visible cracks but the barrier still held strong.

"Eeek!" Phoebe got terrified even more after hearing the impact which in turn prompted for Savior to attack. The doll's lance started to gather up energy while it spun like a drill signifying that it was charging up for an attack.

"Uhh, Phoebe? What is your doll doing?" Blake took a couple steps back as he watched the doll charge on forward. With the minotaur still stuck on the barrier, Savior finished charging up his attack and thrusting it forward. The beast got impaled on the top of it's head but the cracked portion of the barrier got shattered as a result.

"RAAAAAWR!" The minotaur pulled it's head back carrying Savior with it and started to flail around in a frenzy. After a while of it just thrashing around with Savior still hanging on to it, it finally succumbed to its wounds and collapsed. The resulting fall Savior took was enough to shatter him into pieces with only his right arm holding on to the spear remained. Everyone looked intently at the beast only to see no movement coming from it showing that it had already died.

"Well...that just happened." Dylan said looking quite baffled. "So what happens now? Do we all get to share in this kill or something? I mean there is only one minatour here." He pointed out.

"Oh yeah, now that you mentioned it. Chris did just spawn that thing in for all of us." Nathan recalled.

"That, or he wants us to fight over it." Alice added in. She had both her arms crossed.

"Ain't that a cheap way to settle the final round." Dylan shook his head. "Did he expect the score to be tied or something?"

"Hmph. I wouldn't mind fighting over it." Leonard stepped up. "Makes things a whole lot easier." He said with a smug look.

"Ha! How so? From what I've seen so far you're the one always being carried around! I doubt you could even take us on in a straight up fight." Alice said with a smug look of her own. Leonard glared back at her.

"You really want to test me huh? Then bring it!" Leonard roared at her. He clutched on to his weapon tight and was about to charge in on her but was interrupted when Chris's voice was suddenly heard stopping them.

"Hold it!" Chris said before reappearing back into the virtual world. "I'll have to stop you two right there."

"Hmph. Took you long enough." Skell said as he slowly approached them. The hunters were surprised to see he hadn't left. "It was getting quite boring to not step in and stop them you know?"

"Hey, at least we got some interesting footage." Chris grinned. "Anyways, lets just get this show on the road. Assistants, go and prepare the beast for the chefs to cook. You may all have one part each." The host commanded them. "And Skell, follow me back into my office. I'll be introducing you to a couple people." He said before disappearing once more.

"Umm, okay then." Skell looked a bit confused before flickering out as well. All of the contestants were now left on their own once more.

"Well, umm, lets start gutting the minotaur I guess." Blake said to his assistants with a weak smile.

"Yeah...you three do the same as well." Paris said to her assistants as well.

(Confessional)

Lucette: Eww...getting that thing gutted was the most disgusting thing I've ever seen! I could still feel how squishy and gross it felt *shivers*. Good thing Phoebe's doll came in handy for this. I just hope this thing taste as good as actual beef.

Gelsey: Well, umm, *gulp* that was some queasy work I should say. I could barely stomach the smell it emitted once all the guts were out. It was made even worst when we accidentally bursted that things stomach!

Phoebe: G-good thing V-Violin c-came in handy when we had to c-cut it open. Th-though I couldn't s-say much for myself...I r-ran off when I s-saw all the i-insides start sprawling o-out.

Ginger: Man, why do all little girls have to act that way? Heck, even Tricia nearly fainted when we had to cut that thing open! Its just virtual guts and all! It's not like its real or anything. *sigh* Well...there is no use complaining about it now. At least its over with.

(End confessional)

After some time had passed, the assistants finished in gutting out the minotaur and chose which portion they would be using to cook. Over by the Gold team's table they had a large slab of a sirloin slice that was placed on a large plate. The meat looked to be already well marinated with spices covering the surface.

"Its time to put this on the pan!" Paris said looking quite enthusiastic as she picked up the plate and carried it on over to the stove. A pan was already placed on top of it with some minced garlic already simmering on it. Paris placed the meat on the pan and it started to sizzle. "Oh! I just remembered something! Can someone grab the red wine inside the cabinets please?"

"I got it!" Laren said happily as she searched under the table where the cabinets were. After a short while she popped on out with a bottle of red wine on hand. She proceeded to hand it on over to Paris. "Here you go!"

"Thank you!" Paris opened up the bottle and poured some wine all over the pan. A small, bright-red flame burst out from the pan but the dancer still looked calm. An intoxicating aroma flowed through from the pan which captured her teammates' attention.

"Wow! I only see that style of cooking on tv. I never expected to see someone actually do it." Gelsey said looking quite amazed.

"Yeah, I'll give Paris this one. She may not be a skilled fighter but at least her other skills served us well." Ginger commented. Paris was oblivious to their praises for she was way to caught up on her cooking.

Over on by the Diamond team's kitchen area, Blake was already busy cooking up his meal. He had two large ribs sitting on the grill as he watched over them. Moments later he grabbed a pair of thongs and flipped each rib over. He then spread some barbeque sauce all over each one of them soon after.

"Wow! These ribs look real good already!" Lucette exclaimed. She soon got a whiff of what there food smelled like which caused her to get even more excited. "It smells really tasty as well!"

"Thanks!" Blake smiled at her. "Oh yeah, how's the steamed veggies coming along?"

"Its going quite well. I have Phoebe watching over it for the time being." Lucette answered. Blake was at a pause for a second after hearing this. "Oh, you don't need worry about her. I noticed that Clint kept watching over her whenever she does something so I can bet nothing bad is going to happen." She assured.

"Really now?" The prankster now looked quite intrigued. He looked over his shoulder to see if what Lucette said was true and soon noticed Clint keeping a close eye on Phoebe, albeit with a plain expression. "Hmm, I wonder what was their relationship in their old team?" He pondered. "I mean by the looks of it, Clint doesn't look like the type of guy to deal with people like Phoebe." He added in.

"Yeah, he does look the part. Always looking all cool and serious...I wonder if Phoebe is in to that?" Lucette started daydreaming. "Maybe I'll ask Ginger about that later."

(Confessional)

Blake: Hmm, Phoebe and Clint huh? Now that I think about it that's going to be a really deadly combo once merge hits. Phoebe's dolls taking care of anything that comes their way while Clint takes down hard to reach enemies with killer accuracy. I wouldn't want to be on their bad side when that happens.

(End Confessional)

The time now skipped ahead to where both sides had already finished cooking and preparing their meals to be judged. Chris this time around was the one shown to be judging the final round for he was the one seated on the table.

"Hey Chris, where's Skell? I thought he was the one supposed to be judging us?" Blake asked with a confused look.

"Oh, its nothing important really. I just made him do some early...uhh, preparations for the next challenge is all." The host answered with a sly looking grin. "Anyways, its time to start the taste testing! Since you already got my attention, lets start with you, Blake." He pointed towards the prankster.

"Oh, umm, okay." The prankster cleared his throat. "Phoebe. Please serve Chris here our dish."

"O-okay..." Phoebe got her doll, Violin, to grab the plate containing their barbequed minotaur ribs dripping with barbeque sauce. A side of steamed mixed veggies were placed on the side of the plate. The doll placed the plate on Chris' table and took a bow before leaving.

"Hmm, these are some rather large ribs." Chris said eyeing his food. "Lets see if this taste as good as it looks." He picked up his knife and fork and began eating. "Hmm, not bad." Chris commented while still chewing. "For someone who's mostly into pranking others, this tasted better than expected. I don't often say this but good job." He praised him.

"Thanks!" Blake felt very confident now. "Lets see if you can top that, Paris." He said smirking at her. Paris wasn't fazed by this at all and gave back a smirk of her own.

"We'll see about that." Paris said back to him. She walked elegantly towards Chris with her plate in hand and placed her dish right on the table. Presented to Chris now was flame cooked pepper minatour steak covered evenly in steak sauce. Chris whiffed an aromatic scent that got his mouth watering.

"Damn...this might even rival even Chef's cooking back in the real world." Chris said looking quite astonished.

"Oh please, my cooking can even rival Gordan Ramsey's." Paris said with a lot of confidence backing it up.

"Really now? Lets see if your word can hold some water to it." Chris said back to her with a small grin. Picking up his utensils again he cut off a small piece and began eating it. The moment he started chewing on his food n array of savory tastes started filling his mouth that he can't help but cover it. After a while off savoring the taste of his food he removed his hand from his mouth to show a small smile underneath.

"Well?" Paris asked, though she already knew what was going to be his answer.

"You know, I don't know the right words to use to describe how good this tastes. Well, maybe except for one." Chris took a dramatic pause as he gave the dancer a serious look. "Paris. You guys won the third and final round for today's challenge." He said to her. The gold team started to cheer the moment they heard this.

"Sweet! Good job, Paris!" Laren cheered her on.

"Yeah! That was some really nice cooking you did there as well!" Gelsey added in.

"Don't get to excited now girls. This just means our scores are tied." Dylan reminded them as he stepped up. The mood went back to being serious after hearing this. "We still need to beat them in the tie breaker round whatever it may be."

"Oh right, you two are tied one-to-one after this round since Skell told me no one won the lunch round." Chris thought back. "A bonus round is in order then." He flicked his fingers and soon his panel appeared. "Since we don't have a lot of time left lets do something interesting for the final round." He said with a small grin. "Blake. Please join me and Paris here in the front." He commanded the prankster.

"Umm, okay?" Blake looked a bit skeptical about what Chris had planned for them. After a short while he was now standing beside Chris.

"Good. For our bonus round to determine the overall winner for this day's challenge is with..." Chris trailed off to make things suspenseful. "A food eating race!" He announced.

"What!?" Paris looked quite surprised at this.

"Yes!" Blake started jumping. "I got this in the bag since there is not a lot to eat on mine!" He exclaimed.

"Isn't there a better way to do this?" Paris insisted. Chris just gave started silently laughing at her.

"Nope!" The host answered as he waved her off. The dancer didn't like hearing this for one bit. "Anyways, let the final round...begin!" He announced. As he did, Blake already pulled out a rib piece and started gnawing on it. Paris on the other hand scrambled to find a clean set of utensils before eating hers.

"Come on Paris. You can do this!" Ginger cheered her on.

"Lets go Blake! You got this one easy!" Lucette did the same.

Blake already had a small pile of clean rib bones on his plate while Paris only had finished a fifth of her steak by this point. The two teams continued on to cheer for their chefs as they devoured their food.

"Damn...this steak is to much..." Paris says as she tries to catch her breath from all the eating. She was barely finished eating a fourth of the steak now.

"I don't know a bout you but I'm almost done with mine. *burp* Excuse me." Blake said back to her. A large pile of rib bones were stacked beside him with only half-way to go before finishing. "You could give up if you can't take it anymore."

"Ha! Like that will happen." Paris said before eating another piece of meat. Both continued on eating the food they themselves had prepared.

After a few minutes had passed of them eating and eating, only a few rib pieces were left for Blake while Paris only had one-third of her steak left to go. Both of them looked like they were already at their limits for the former was getting sloppier in eating out the bones while the latter could no longer slice large pieces.

"Lets go Paris! Don't give now!" Gelsey started to cheer her on.

"Hmph. You better win this round since you're the only one who got to eat around here!" Alice demanded from him.

Both sides looked to be at the verge of giving up but none were giving in.

"Wow. These two are determined to win that much huh?" Chris commented on them. Blake only had three more rib pieces left while Paris was down to the last fourth of hers. Both looked to be getting slower and slower when it came to eating.

"Just...a little...more..." Paris pushed herself to take another bite.

"*burp* heh...you're not...going to beat me..." Blake said back as he picked up another rib piece.

As the two continued on to eat, everyone was now watching them intensely for Blake was down to his last rib while Paris only had a small portion left. After a couple seconds had passed, Blake was the first one to finish eating his food for he slammed the final rib piece down while Paris only had a single bite left.

"I *burp* did it!" The prankster announced as shot himself up from his seat. His team started to cheer him on.

"Well, that settles it. The Diamond dusk wolves have won today's challenge thus earning them immunity!" Chris announced. "Golden dawn elves, I'll be seeing you all later for tonight's elimination. Since we don't have a lot of time left, it will be in thirty-minutes so start planning." He started to laugh maniacally at them. Moments later he flickered out of virtual reality with his laughter trailing off.

"Well that sucks. We just formed our new team and now its getting torn apart." Laren frowned.

"Yeah, we even had an advantage in cooks as well." Ginger crossed her arms. "Right Paris?...uhh...Paris?"

"Urp...we need to go to the bathroom. Stat!" Paris said looking a bit sick.

All the contestants soon got taken out of the virtual world and were now headed back to reality.

(Confessional)

Paris: Ugh...that was so unfair! Letting the tie breaker round be a food eating competition. He didn't even let us choose who we want to represent our team! I'm so totally going to get back at him someday!

Blake: I'll have to admit, that was hard. I could barely stomach eating another bite but I managed to pull through and win it in the end. Though I do feel bad for Paris though since I saw her run through the doors with Ginger chasing.

(End Confessional)

* * *

(Girl's bathroom. Twenty-five minutes before ceremony)

Inside the girls bathroom Ginger was shown to be standing outside the stalls with her back pressed against one of them. The sound of someone hurling echoed throughout the bathroom followed by some constant groaning. A few seconds later the hurling stopped with the sound a toilet flushing followed right after. One of the stall doors soon opened up with Paris walking out of it.

"You okay?" Ginger asked. Paris just gave her a slight nod.

"Yeah, I think so." Paris answered. "Now, what where saying again while I was in there? I didn't quite hear you well."

"I said we should plan out who to vote off now." Ginger reminded her. "I suggest we vote off one of the hunters since they failed during the second round." She suggested. "What do you think?"

"Hmm, sounds interesting but I think I have a better idea." Paris insisted. "I say we vote off someone from the old yellow team." She suggested instead. Ginger just blinked at her.

"Why target them specifically?"

"Well, its so that we can establish a majority." Paris now answered. Ginger still looked quite confused about this. "Let me explain. As far as we know, Nathan could still be on our side so we have three votes to our name but the problem is so does the old yellow team. If we drop one of them out now then we can have the majority in votes when the need arises. Simple!" She explained.

"Okay, but that still doesn't answer my question on who to vote off." Ginger crossed her arms. "Also, what about Laren? She's in the minority in our team. What happens if the others get to her first and make them vote with them?" She pointed out.

"Don't worry about her, I'll make sure we get to her first." Paris assured. "Right now, lets just think about who to vote off from the other three."

"Okay. How about Dylan then? Based on what he did to Blake yesterday makes him a volatile character to have." Ginger suggested. Paris just shook her head.

"That may be so, but we can still use his skills for challenges." Paris argued. "Maybe choose someone who is more on the weaker side. And besides, we could always vote Dylan off for later."

"Well, that only leaves Gelsey then. From what I could tell she really hasn't been doing anything much for her team." Ginger explained to her. "And if the very first challenge means anything, she is pretty much a clumsy person. Getting lost and trapped and all" She recalled.

"Hmm, now that I think about it, she was in-charge of breaking the eggs on the first round." Paris thought back. "It may have been her fault. Yeah, lets vote her off then." She agreed.

"Attention Golden dawn elves. Please send in your votes for the ceremony is about to start. That is all." Chris' voice was heard announcing.

"Well, that's our cue. We better get ready." Paris says as she was about to walk out. "Quickly go find Nathan and tell him who to vote and why. I'll go just go find Laren and try to persuade her." She instructed before walking off.

As Paris was shown walking out of the girl's bathroom, Gelsey was seen hiding around the corner with her back pressed against the wall. She over heard everything the two were talking about inside. The moment she saw Paris go, she immediately ran off.

(Confessional)

Gelsey: I got to go and find the others fast if I want to save myself. Hopefully another tie breaker happens. *gulps*

(End Confessional)

* * *

(Elimination grounds: Golden dawn elves)

All remaining contestants were shown sitting around the fire with Chris and Skell in the middle of it. The latter held a plate of cookies in the shape of elf heads while the former held out a piece of paper.

"Welcome golden dawn elves! You are the first team to face elimination after the team shuffle!" Chris announced to them looking quite excited. The gold team wasn't to excited at all.

"Just hurry on up already!" Leonard roared at him. Chris just glared back at him.

"Anyways, lets begin!" Chris announced now. "Starting with Ginger." He started.

Ginger managed to catch hers and triumphantly took a bite out of it.

"Laren..."

Laren's cookie went over her head and it broke into pieces.

"Dylan..."

Dylan caught his but he accidentally crushed it.

"Leonard..."

Leonard's cookie landed on his lap but he flicked it off instead.

"Paris. Gelsey. You two received votes from your team but only one of you is safe." Chris said to them. Gelsey was feeling tensed in her seat while Paris still looked a bit calm. "The one that is safe is...

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...Paris. Congratulations."

Paris gave off a small smile as she caught her cookie successfully. Gelsey looked a bit down after hearing this.

"Gelsey. You have been voted off by your team. Any last words?" Chris asked her.

"Man, this sucks." Gelsey said slumping down. "At least I had a good enough run while it lasted."

"Hmm, trying to keep things positive I see? Skell. Take her away." Chris commanded his partner.

"Gelsey, follow me." Skell says as both he and Gelsey left the scene.

"That is all. You guys can go now." Chris announced to everyone else. "Enjoy your evening for it may be your last." He laughed evilly. Everyone soon left only leaving Chris behind. The camera started to slowly zoom in on him.

"Well, there you have it our dear viewers! The golden dawn elves was the first team to suffer a casualty right after the teams have been shuffled with poor Gelsey paying that price." Chris paused as smiled his trademark smile. "Will the golden dawn elves manage to pick themselves up and renew themselves for the next challenge? Will the diamond dusk wolves be able to keep things civil until merge hits? Who were the people Skell got introduced to? Find out next time on Total...Drama...Dungeon Hunters!" He held both his arms wide open dramatically.

* * *

Votes:

Paris: My vote goes to Gelsey. She may or may not have caused our lost in the first round but she's part of the old yellow team so my vote goes to her.

Ginger: I'm going to have to trust Paris for now and vote Gelsey. Seems a bit sketchy since Dylan would have better in all honesty.

Nathan: Ginger approached me and said I should vote for Gelsey. I have no problems with it since she is part of my old team so I can trust her in this.

Laren: Both Paris and Gelsey approached me on who to vote off. Both of them wanted to vote off the other and I don't know exactly who to trust between them. So, I'll vote of Paris instead since Gelsey got to me first before she did.

Gelsey: Shit. I couldn't find Leonard or Dylan anywhere on time so I'm screwed! If I'm lucky enough one of them would decide to vote out Paris. My vote goes to Paris.

Leonard: You know what? Screw Dylan! I've had it with that guy bossing me around like he is some sort of hot shot. My vote goes to Dylan.

Dylan: Leonard, that hot head is starting to get on my nerves. I'm surprised he even made it this far. You may be physically capable here but in the virtual world that's where the real game is at! My vote goes to Leonard.

* * *

Places:

18th: Estwynn Paratus. The Mech and Hero Enthusiast. Role: Fighter

17th: Derek Wright. The Dangerous Outcast. Role: Fighter

16th: Kali Dulal. The Folklore/Mythology Enthusiast. Role: Duelist

15th: Tristan Kelly. The Mechanic. Role: Backrow

14th: Gelsey. The Smol Girl. Role: Support

* * *

 **Author's note: Gelsey...she's quite the uhh interesting character. Because at most, I technically own her at this point. She's the character my irl friend gave me but her app was incomplete so filled in most of it myself for her to be usable. The reason why she has no last name is because he didn't give her one. That's all I have to say about her really. So if you are reading this bro, next time I make a story, make sure you fill in the app properly next time.**

 **Anyways, onto the chapter question: Deceptive and seductive. Objective and cool. Two different sets of character traits that can make for an interesting character. How well will your character perform if they were to spend some alone time with either one of them? That is all. See you all next time!**


	11. A date to be Unexpected

**Quick AN: I'd like to apologize to Clint's and Nathan's creators in advance for their challenge is going to get a bit...explicit so yeah...enjoy!**

* * *

"Last time on Total Drama: Dungeon Hunters." Chris said as he started off the episode with his trademark smile. "Our previous three teams: Red Dragons, Blue Nagas, and Yellow Chocobos, have been fused together to form two new teams to start of the mid-game before the merge hits." An aerial image of Skell dividing the contestants was shown on screen.

"The Golden Dawn Elves and the Diamond Dusk Wolves are the names of the new teams that entered last times challenge as well as being the final team moving on forward." Portraits of each contestant underneath their respective teams was shown on screen. "Though sadly they only had a few moments to get to know each other for they were immediately sent in to face their first challenge with the threat of elimination hanging over their heads." Chris gave off an evil looking grin.

"The challenge the new teams faced was a 'simple' cooking challenge encompassing the three important meals of the day: Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner." A still image of each team standing in their respective kitchen areas was shown on screen. "After an entire hard days work of cooking and hunting, both teams ended up in a draw forcing a tie breaker speed eating contest between chefs to finally settle the winners of the challenge." A replay of Paris eating her large steak and Blake eating his large barbeque ribs was shown on screen. "After an intense match between them, Blake of the newly formed Diamond Dusk Wolves took the first victory for their team and forcing the Golden Dawn Elves into elimination." A still image of Blake standing over Paris triumphantly was shown on screen.

"The Golden Dawn Elves now facing the first elimination, Gelsey was the poor soul that paid its price." A replay of Gelsey leaving the camp site with Skell was shown on screen. As the replay ended the camera started to slowly zoom in on Chris. "Will the light of a new dawn be able to save the elves on what's to come? Or will the eternal dusk be enough for the wolves to stay on top? Find out now on Total...Drama...Dungeon Hunters!"

~(Theme Song)~

* * *

(Chef's food tent)

It was another bright morning with the sunlight lighting up the inside off the tent from the outside. Sitting by their own on one of the tables was Alice. She was already wearing her everyday clothes and was shown to be eating a bowl of cereal with a glass of apple juice. She was just silently eating her food when someone suddenly came inside.

"Hello? Is anybody here?" A new voice called out. Alice looking up from her food saw the newcomer walking inside. The newcomer took notice of Alice and quickly approached her. "Hi! My names Alysson." The new person introduced themselves. Alysson wore a light blue sleeveless hoodie with a white tank top underneath, jean shorts with ripped designer ends, and low brown boots. Wavy silver hair done up in high ponytails with two long strands flowed down from the sides of their face. The newcomer stared at Alice with their ruby red eyes before speaking up. "Are you by chance Alice?" Alysson asked.

"Yeah. What is that you want?" Alice said in response. Alysson just gave her a bright smile after hearing this.

"Great! Then that means you might know where Kazuo is!" Alysson exclaimed happily. "I was told I could find him here with you but it turns out he wasn't." Alysson explained with a slight frown. "Do you by chance know where he is?"

"Yeah, but who told you he would be here with me?" Alice asked looking rather critical about this newcomer.

"A cute boy called Blake told me~" Alysson purred at the mention. "Though that friend of his looked scary. I think Paris was her name?" Alysson thought back.

"Hmph. Well, you got the wrong information for I don't know where he is." Alice insisted. She kept a steady cold stare at Alysson as she examine the newcomer further. "If you want to find him, go towards the cabins then." She suggested.

"Uhh, okay. I'll be taking my leave now." Alysson took a couple steps backwards before turning around to face the exit. "Hmm, what's her deal?" Alysson thought for a moment while walking towards the exit. As Alysson flipped open the tent's entrance cover, Alysson started to squeal in excitement to who was outside. "Oh my god! Kazuo!" Alysson bolted out of the tent. Some faint giggling was heard afterwards.

As soon as Alysson left, Alice felt slightly curious about the two. Thinking over it for a second, she soon got up and stood by the entrance. Flipping over the cover just slightly she peaked outside only to see the two holding on to each other close. Alysson's arms were wrapped around Kazuo's neck while Kazuo had his arms on Alysson's waist. Alice listened in carefully to what the two were talking about.

"Oh you don't know how much I missed you Kazuo! I'm glad Chris decided to invite me over!" Alysson said in excitement.

"Yeah, its been a while as well." Kazuo said with a small smile. "Let me guess, is this the little secret you told me in our phone call?" He now asked. Alysson just giggled at him.

"That, and for something else." The former winked at him.

"Would you mind telling me what the something else is?" The latter also now asked. Alysson just brought in their lips close but stopped before they could even touch.

"Maybe if you'll give me a quick kiss then I might just tell you." Alysson whispered in a sultry tone.

Giving off a soft chuckle, Kazuo pulled Alysson away from him but kept Alysson within arms reach. Staring deeply into Alysson's red eyes, a soft smile was planted on his face. As the two continue to stare at each other, Alysson could already feel the pressure and intensity of the moment building up.

"Umm...uhh...K-Kazuo? Y-you wanna say something?" Alysson said stammering. Alysson's heart started beating faster and faster as each second ticked by. Without saying a word, Kazuo quickly leaned in forward while at the same time making Alysson lean back. Kazuo slid his right hand down on to Alysson's back during the entire process until he was finally carrying Alysson. He soon started to play with the back of Alysson's hair causing a big gulp as a response.

"Hmm, even though I already knew your little secret you still act this way towards me. How interesting." Kazuo said with sly grin. Alysson couldn't say anything given the situation they are in and just clung on tightly onto Kazuo's neck. "Hmm, I wonder..." Kazuo soon started to slowly trace his fingers up Alysson's back. The sheer sensation plus the anxiety was enough to drive Alysson crazy.

"K-Kazuo...s-stop it!..This is embarrassing!" Alysson pleaded while trying to hold back. Kazuo just ignored his old friend's pleadings and continued on with tickling Alysson's back. After a short while, Kazuo suddenly stopped and grabbed onto Alysson's chin. He lifted Alysson's face up to meet his.

"Hmm, if only-" Kazuo was suddenly cut off when Alice suddenly came stomping out of the tent. She suddenly grabbed Kazuo by the collar of his shirt and dragged him away.

"Kazuo, we need to talk. Now!" Alice demanded before dragging Kazuo away. Alysson got dropped onto the ground because of it.

"Oh, umm, okay?" Kazuo responded while looking a bit confused. He looked back forward only to see Alysson sitting up now. "I'll see you later I guess!" Kazuo waved. No response came for Alysson looked a bit flushed while panting heavily. This caused Kazuo to grin but failed to notice Alysson grinning back.

"Heh, we'll see." Alysson said in a hushed tone.

(Confessional)

Alysson: Hmm, it feels nice to be in here again...Anyways, that Kazuo, still the same as always *giggles*. Not that its bad thing since in all honesty I kinda like it. Makes things a whole lot more interesting. *winks*

(End Confessional)

The camera now following the two showed Alice dragging Kazuo towards one of the cabins. The former opened up the cabin door and shoved the latter inside. She then went inside and slammed the door shut.

"Ah! Alice?! What's going on?" Laren was heard off-screen. The camera turning around showed Laren finishing up with wrapping her towel around herself. Her long white hair was dripping wet still. "Eek! What's Kazuo doing here?"

"I'll explain later!" Alice answered. She soon turned back to face Kazuo to confront him. "Tell me, whats the deal between you and that girl earlier?" Alice questioned him with her arms crossed and a hard glare. Kazuo was still confused about his situation.

"What? What girl?" Kazuo now asked. He still didn't know what was going on.

"Don't play games with me Kazuo! I saw you earlier with that girl. Alysson if I remember her name right." Alice said confronting him about Alysson.

"Oh...Alysson. Yes, her." Kazuo said with a slight grin. "Don't worry about it. We're just old aquaintances is all." He now answered.

"Uh-huh, yeah. That's hard to believe given how you two were acting earlier." Alice was starting to get impatient with him. "Now, I'll ask you again, what's the deal between you and her." She asked once more. Soft chuckling was soon heard from Kazuo.

"Fine. If you must know, me and Alysson were once in a T.D. before." Kazuo now said with a small grin. "If you're going to ask why...she's here, then I'll have to say I don't know either." He explained. Alice still looks rather skeptical. "What? Its true. Alysson didn't tell me why." He insisted further.

"Mhmm. Sure." Alice calmed down a bit but still looked rather skeptical about him. She walked towards the door and stood their for a moment before turning around to face Kazuo once more. "If that's all you have to say then I guess we're done here." She held the door open. "Knowing you though, there's probably more to it. Now get out."

Kazuo just stared at Alice for a brief moment and looked like he was about to say something else but just kept it to himself. He instead just walked towards the opened the door. He stopped just before exiting the doorway to face Alice once more.

"Well, I'll be seeing you later during the challenge then." He said before finally leaving. Alice soon closed the door shut.

"Hmph. Stupid piece of-" Alice stopped as she realized Laren was still standing in the room with her. "Oh, forgot you were here."

"Umm, care to explain what just happened?" Laren asked. "Also, can I have some privacy? Please?"

"Oh, umm, sure." Alice quickly stepped outside of the cabin.

(Confessionals)

Kazuo: Well, that was certainly interesting. Didn't really expect to see Alysson again. As well as getting that sort of reaction from Alice. I wonder why they decided to bring h...er, her here. Is it because of Alysson's little secret? If so, should I spoil it already for the viewers? Nah, that'll be to boring. I'm sure it'll be revealed later on eventually...or maybe not. *chuckles*

Alice: That Alysson girl. Normally I wouldn't care much but knowing that her and Kazuo have some sort of relationship with each other makes things a whole lot more unsettling. I wonder why Chris decided to bring her here for? Knowing him its probably for a challenge but for what? I need to keep my eyes peeled for whatever she has to offer. Having Kazuo on my plate is already troubling enough.

Laren: Hmm, based on how Alice explained it, it seems as though Kazuo is already taken. I wonder though why Alice is making such a fuss about this? *eyes widened* Wait...is it possible that Alice actually likes Kazuo and is getting jealous? If this ends up being all one big misunderstanding then I support them all the way! I mean, a tsundere relationship tends to end up being the cutest one so hopefully it might turn out that way for them.

(End Confessional)

The scene now changed to inside the virtual world. The sound metal clashing, grass rustling, and loud grunting was heard throughout the area. The camera panning towards where the sounds came from showed Dylan and Nathan duelling on the open field.

"Ha!" Dylan slashed his sword down onto Nathan. The latter managed to block the formers blow with his katana. With the two now in a blade lock, Nathan took the initiative and pushed Dylan back. The gamer now stumbling, Nathan took his chance and slashed Dylan sideways. "I don't think so." Said Dylan as he blocked with his sword.

"Hmph." Nathan pulled himself away from Dylan. He soon took on a defensive stance.

"You know, you're not a half-bad fighter. How come you don't show it often?" Dylan asked as he held his blade forward. Nathan didn't say anything and just charged straight at him. Seeing the attack coming, Dylan moved his sword forward to meet Nathan's and soon they were stuck in another blade lock. Both sides doing their best to not get bested by the other.

"That's because I'd rather keep to myself and not have all the attention on me." Nathan now answered as they both struggled to push the other off. He soon decided to turn his body sideways and took a step back causing Dylan to start fumbling forward. With Dylan now exposed, Nathan tried to slash down on him but Dylan managed to turn around and block the attack.

"Heh, nice try." The gamer grinned. He soon shoved Nathan away and brought his sword back into an offensive stance. "Let me guess, your plan is to just drift on by until merge hits, right?"

"You could say that." Nathan answered as he recomposed himself. He took on another defensive stance.

"Fine. How about I make you an offer then?" Dylan asked with a small grin. He soon dropped his stance and sheathed back his sword. Nathan saw this and did the same.

"Okay. What is it?" Nathan asked looking rather suspicious of him.

"Well, how about being part of an alliance with me? Since you know, your plan is just to drift on by people might think your just dead weight even though your not." Dylan explained to him. "So? How about it? For security purposes."

"Interesting offer but...let's just say I have a safety net." Nathan answered with instead. "You should really watch out for your own back instead."

"I see." A frown was now casted upon Dylan's face. "Still...you should reconsider. Since that net of yours is only as safe depending on how high you set it." He soon drew his blade and pointed it towards Nathan. "Now have at you!" He charged forward.

"Hmph. We'll see." A small grin was shown on Nathan's face as the two clashed blades.

(Confessional)

Dylan: That Nathan. He's a skilled fighter alright. With a levelled head as well! You'll rarely see the two working in tangent. Take it from me. I've played with a bunch of people online on multiple platforms and people like him are hard to come by. You either get paired with someone who's highly skilled but have their egos reaching as high as the sky, or have someone who can keep a calm demeanour but don't have the skills necessary to back it up. It would be a shame really if he gets eliminated now that merge is close. The only one left like that here is Clint. But he's on the other side of the divide.

Nathan: Not gonna lie. Dylan does make for a tempting offer. Having two forms of security will ensure me to reach merge. But the question for me remains...can I really turn my back on Ginger and Paris? I mean, we weren't all close, well, me and them at least back in our old team, but they do seem to trust me. *sigh* Well...I'll just have to wait and see really.

(End confessional)

The scene now shifted to the opposite end of the forest where Blake, Ginger, and Lucette were shown to be. The three of them were just taking a long walk through the forest. Blake was the one leading them with Lucette following happily along except for Ginger who had her arms crossed with a bored look on her face.

"Ugh, why did you drag me all the way out here? I could be using this time right now for some needed training!" Ginger started to complain.

"Oh come on now, have a break every once in a while. I mean look at this place? It offers just the perfect conditions for a leisurely stroll!" Blake answered back to her with a warm smile. "Don't you agree?"

"If you mean by 'perfect' being risking our lives in a forest filled with traps and monsters. Then yes, I totally agree." Ginger said in a very sarcastically. "If this is your attempts on wooing me then I suggest you change your approach since I'm not that type of girl." She said while looking at him coldly. Blake didn't know what to say after that one. Silence fell between them for moment until Lucette spoke ip

"Well, I for one think this is a grand idea!" Lucette said breaking the silence. "I don't mind getting a wild encounter so as long as you're here. Since I know you'll come in and be my shining knight." She held on to Blake's right arm. Lucette soon gave him a bright smile. Blake didn't know how to act to this as well.

"Well, umm, okay. Glad you liked it. Though you weren't supposed to be here to begin with." Blake said back to her. Lucette felt a bit down after hearing that one but still manage to hold on to a smile. The prankster though was a bit oblivious to this.

"Oh, umm, like I said before going here, I really didn't mind." Lucette soon slowly let go of Blake's arm.

"Smooth one Blake, smooth." Ginger started shaking her head. She soon stopped walking causing the other two to stop as well. "Well now, if you don't mind me, I'll be heading on back." She turned her heel was now facing the other way. She stood there for a second before continuing to walk off.

"Ginger wait." Blake chased after her but stopped when a sudden gun shot was heard nearby. Everyone heard this and looked towards the direction it came from.

"Uhh, w-what was that?" Lucette looked a bit anxious. The other two just had intent looks towards the other side of the bushes to where the gun shot was heard.

"I don't know. But whatever it is we need to be careful." Ginger slowly drew out her twin pistols. The shadow blades soon emerged as she held on to them.

"You guys stay here. I'll go and check it out." Blake said to them in a hushed tone. He already had his bow out.

"Yeah, no. I'm not buying any of that hero crap!" Ginger answered back to him as she stepped on up.

"What? No! I a...*sigh* Fine. Just keep it down okay?" Blake asked of her. Ginger just scoffed but slowly crept towards the thick bushes. The prankster just let out another sigh before following just behind.

"Be careful guys!" Lucette pleaded from them as she watched them walk off.

As the two slowly walk towards thick bushes and trees, they soon stopped when they noticed some movement happening. They both held out their respective weapons as they aimed them carefully right at the site. Waiting patiently now the bushes started to rustle a bit more vigorously until a new comer emerged.

"Hmph. Barbaric fool." A dashing young man wearing a light grey trench coat emerged from the bushes. He held raised in his right hand a silver revolver with his finger on it's trigger. Striking, well combed, silver hair lay atop his head. "That's the last time I'll let that dastard of a host-" He paused as he took notice of the two aiming their weapons at him. He stared at them with his piercing silver eyes and raised brow before speaking up. "And who might you two be?" He scanned each one of them. "By the looks of things you two are some of the contestants I presume?"

"Yeah? And what about you? What are you doing in our virtual world?" Ginger questioned the newcomer. She kept both guns aimed at him still.

"A better question being who allowed you to be here anyways?" Blake added in as he kept is bow steady. An arrow laced with flames was aimed right at him. "And you better lay down that gun of yours as well!" He demanded as he pulled back on the string.

Seeing the position he was in, he complied with what Blake said and kept his revolver inside his trench coat. "My name is Nicholas Blackburn." He introduced himself calmly. "As for who let me in, it was that fool of a host of yours. He told me to enter the virtual world to get re-acquainted with its feeling." He explained to them. "Satisfied?" The two just looked at each other for a bit before coming to an agreement. Both of them soon laid down their arms.

"Okay Nicholas. Tell us then, why did Chris bring you on over?" Ginger interrogated him further. A small smile was soon shown on Nicholas' face.

"For my purpose I'm afraid I can't answer that. As for my reason on being here however, its pretty much obvious as to why Chris will bring in a guest." Nicholas answered. "Now that I've entertained your questions, its time you answered mine. Will the three of you give me the honour of your names?" He asked them in a cool tone.

"The names Ginger. Ginger De Maringey to be precise." She introduced.

"And my name is Blake Harvington." He introduced with a cocky smile.

"I see." Nicholas nodded. He soon took notice of Lucette staring at him from the back. "And who might you be miss?" He asked her.

"Oh umm uhh..." Lucette was speechless. Ginger sighed.

"Not this again." Ginger shook her head. "Anyways, her name is Lucette. Lucette umm..." She started snapping her fingers.

"Pretzel! I mean, umm, Quetzal! Oh, umm, yeah..." Lucette answered looking quite embarrassed. Nicholas soon gave her an intrigued look.

"Hmm, its nice to meet you as well." Nicholas smiled at her. Lucette suddenly felt like her heart skipped a beat for she looked rather flushed.

"Uhh, umm, y-yeah..." Lucette started to stammer. She was about to say something else but stopped when an announcement was heard.

"Attention everyone!" Skell's voice was soon heard echoing throughout the forest. "The next challenge is about to begin. Please be here in challenge building within the hour. That is all." The announcement ended and soon the portal back to the real world appeared.

"Well now, I think that's our cue." Nicholas walked on up towards the portal. "Please. Ladies first." He extended an arm towards them.

"My, aren't you such a gentleman." Ginger gave Blake a smirk as she took Nicholas' hand. She soon disappeared inside the portal.

"Hmph. Whatever." Blake said back at her just before she entered he portal with his eyes narrowed. He soon entered the portal right after. Lucette was now the only one left. She just stood their staring longingly towards him.

"That only leaves you, Lucette." Nicholas extended his hand out once more. "We don't want the others to be waiting." He said in a smooth tone. Lucette soon snapped out of it and came back to her senses.

"Oh, umm, uhuh." She shyly took his hand and went on in as well.

Nicholas now left, he let out a deep sigh. "Well...this is going to be a long day." He said looking rather bored. "At least I could resolve a couple cases. Especially since she's here." He now looked a bit spiteful. He soon entered the portal.

The scene now shifted to inside the challenge building. The two hosts were already standing by the control panel accompanied by Nathan and Dylan standing in the middle of the room. They all watched as Ginger, Lucette, Blake, and Nicholas came out of their pods.

"Well, it seems you already met our special guest for today's challenge." Chris said to them.

"Who's he?" Dylan asked as pointed towards Nicholas.

"I'm Nicholas. Its a pleasure to meet you." Nicholas held his hand out for a shake. Dylan grabbed it and shook them both.

"Nice to meet ya. My name is Dylan by the way." Dylan introduced himself. "This guy here is Nathan." He pointed towards his teammate. Nathan just gave him a wave.

"Nice to meet you as well." Nicholas extended his hand to him but Nathan just backed off.

"Its okay. There's no need." Nathan said a bit quietly. Nicholas just raised a brow at him but thought nothing off it as he returned his hand.

"Okay Nicholas, enough with the formalities. You'll get to introduce yourself properly once everyone is here. For now just stand right over here." Chris motioned for him to move. Nicholas just gave him a nod and walked on over. "Now where's Alysson? I even told that freak show to not leave the building!" He looked rather irritated. "I swear, if the others found out about Alysson's little secret before the challenge begins-"

"Don't worry. I made sure something like that didn't happen." Skell said cutting him off.

"Really now?" Chris suddenly noticed the bruise Skell has on his forehead. "And what happend to you face?"

Skell started to shiver a bit. "You don't want to know."

* * *

(Men's bathroom. Earlier this morning.)

"Hurry on up Alysson! Some of the guys might catch you in here!" Skell was shown frantically pacing back and forth the entrance of the bathroom. The sound of water running was heard inside.

"Hey, its not my fault the girl's bathroom has people inside! I mean its not a problem for me but you'll look like a pervert if we decide to go there." Alysson answered back sounding a bit irritated with him. "And besides, luscious hair such as mine takes a lot of proper care to maintain!" Alysson added in.

"Ugh, whatever! Just hurry on up!" The former paused his marching to answer back.

"Fine! Just stop bothering me okay?" Alysson soon went back on taking a shower. A light humming tune soon followed.

After some time had passed with Skell still guarding over Alysson, the bright morning sun was already slowly rising higher and higher from when they started. As he continued his marching, looking quite nervous with each passing minute, he soon heard some light rustling nearby. Feeling a bit panicked now, he looked towards where the rustling came from and out came a squirrel. A sigh of relief soon left Skell.

"Phew. I got worried for a second there." He calmed down a bit. He soon noticed no sound was coming from inside the bathroom. "I wonder what's taking Alysson so long." He thought to himself. "Hey Alysson, you done in there?" He called out while knocking on the wall. No response came. "Uh, Alysson?" Still no response came. Feeling quite nervous now to what might have happened he quickly opened up the curtains and looked inside.

"Hey Alysson are you-" His face turned bright red to what he saw. "OH MY GOD! I'M SO SORRY I DIDN'T MEAN TO-"

"HIYAAAAH! FUCKING PERVERT! GET THE FUCK OUT!" Alysson screamed at him from inside the bathroom.

"Wait! No! Don't-" A pale was soon shown thrown at Skell hitting him on the head. He then got knocked down and fell straight to the ground. Pain filled groaning was soon heard.

* * *

(Challenge building. Present time)

The scene now returned to back inside the challenge building. All the remaining contestants were already inside including Alysson who was standing next to Chris at the front.

"Good. Now that everyone is here, its time for me to introduce these two." Chris said to them. "Starting things of with this, uh, lovely young lady." He said looking a bit disgusted.

"Hi!" Alysson waved at them cutely. "My name is Alysson. It's a pleasure to meet you all!" Alysson exclaimed. "Especially the cute guys I see are in here~" Alysson purred. "Mostly you Kazuo."

Everyone was soon heard talking to each other.

"Hey! That's the cute girl me and Paris saw this morning!" Blake pointed out. "I wonder why Paris looked like she didn't like her?"

"Hmph. I don't like her either!" Lucette pouted. Blake tilted his head by this.

"Oh so she's the girl Alice was talking about this morning." Laren now realized. "Good for Kazuo to have such a cute girlfriend."

"Wait, that's Kazuo's girlfriend? Huh, who knew Kazuo had it in him to ask a girl like her out." Ginger commented as she over heard Laren.

Kazuo though was just silently chuckling to himself through all this. Alice noticed this but just kept to herself.

"Okay enough talk. Chris said to silence them. "Its time for this...dashing young man to introduce himself." He motioned towards Nicholas.

"Good day to you everyone. My name is Nicholas. Its an honour to be here." Nicholas gave them all courteous bow. His gaze soon shifted towards Phoebe. "And its great to see you again as well." He gave the doll faced girl a small smile.

"Oh, umm, i-its great to see you again a-as well." Phoebe gave a shy smile in return. A lot of comotion happened when everyone heard this.

"What?! You and Nicholas know each other? How come you never said anything about having such a cool and suave friend." Lucette started to confront Phoebe.

"Th-thats because y-you guys never asked." Phoebe sheepishly answered.

"You have to tell me everything you know about him! As well as on how you two met!" Lucette now asked her looking quite excited.

"I, uhh, umm..." Phoebe felt pressured now.

"Oh, wow. Ain't he ravishing." Paris commented as she examined Nicholas from head to toe. "I wonder what kind of relationship he has with Phoebe?" She thought to herself. "Hmm, can Clint even keep up with that?"

A lot of talking was soon heard about the two special guests.

"Okay, settle down now. I'm going to explain why these two are here." Chris announced to everyone once more. The room soon fell silent. "Good. Now, the reason why these two are here is fairly simple. They'll be part of today's challenge. For you see, today's challenge is going to be a dating sim challenge! And these two here will be your dates!" He explained to them all. Mixed outcomes came from the contestants.

"Oooh. A dating challenge! This is going to be fun!" Lucette started giggling.

"Ugh, a dating challenge? Really? Why can't we just go back to killing stuff? At least then I wouldn't have to do any small talk." Leonard complained. "Especially with the likes of her no less." He glared at Alysson.

"A dating challenge? How would that even work? Will we be scored based on how well the date goes?" Janet questioned the host.

"Yup! You got that right!" Chris answered. "You all will be receiving points based on how well the date goes. If its successful then you get one point for your team. If not, then no points at all." Chris now explained to them.

"Why a dating challenge though? I thought this season is all about RPGs and stuff." Dylan pointed out. "I don't see how dating has to do with that in anyway."

"Hey, dating sims are RPGs to you know? I thought that would have been obvious for someone like you." Chris argued back at him. Dylan couldn't say anything else back. "Anyways, let me explain the mechanics of our dating sim challenge. For this challenge, the two teams will be split into two. One for guys and one for girls. Alysson here will be the one handling the guys date while Nicholas will be handling girls. Now, to make things feel like an actual date, you guys will be walking to the control panel to choose the date location and it's setting as well as choosing on what you will wear. Only one member from each team will do the challenge at a time while the others watch. Do I make myself clear?" He asked to end of his explanation.

"Quick question?" Ginger raised her hand. "Can we go on a date with the other one as well? You know, so that we can make a comeback if ever." She asked the host. Chris just shook his head.

"Nope. I'm not allowing that. Only one date per team." Chris answered. "And besides, I doubt any of the guys here will want to go on a date with another guy in-front of a camera." Chris pointed out. He soon heard Skell mumbling to himself. "What was that?"

"Oh nothing." Skell answered.

"Okay..." Chris said with a weirded out look. "Oh! And one more thing. You guys aren't allowed to leave here if you haven't finished your dates. Alright?" Everyone groaned after hearing this. "Anyways, lets begin! But before that." He paused as he looked towards the dusk team. "Dusk team. You must bench one of the girls for this challenge to keep things even." He said to them.

"I'll do it." Janet stepped up from her team. "I'm not too keen on dating so I'd rather sit this one out." She explained herself.

"Okay. That settles it then. Janet will be the one to sit this one out." Chris now declared. "With that out of the way, lets get this challenge started with the guy dates! Starting with you Blake. You're up first." He placed the prankster on the spot. Blake was taken by surprise to hear this.

"Wait, what? I'm not yet ready! I don't even know where to begin!" Blake said acting all panicked.

"I don't care." Chris stated plainly. "And you better hurry up. Otherwise I'll be disqualifying you for this challenge."

Blake, still not knowing what to do, was deep in thought on where the date will be held. After a short while an idea soon popped into his head. He soon walked towards the control panel and placed in the location. The place Blake decided to go was the zoo early in the morning.

"The zoo? Really?" Alysson looked rather bored with the location Blake chose. "I was thinking somewhere more romantic really." Alysson shook their head. "Oh well, this will have to do I guess. At least I don't have to think to deeply about what to wear."

"Hey, I haven't been on an actual date before okay!" Blake said to defend himself.

"And yet you plan on trying to win over Ginger. Good job, Blake. Good job." Paris shook her head at him. Blake was about to saying something back at her but Chris cut him off.

"No time for arguments. Just get in the pods so that we can get started already." Chris ordered them.

"Hmph. Fine. Lets get this date over with." Blake said before moving towards a nearby pod. It soon opened up and Blake went in. The glass pane closed down on him the moment he got into place.

"Yippee! I get to know what it feels like to be in virtual reality!" Alysson skipped on over to the pod across from. Alysson did the same and was now comfortably inside the pod.

"Now that those two are out of the way, its time to get this date started!" Chris sat down on his chair turned it around to face the control panel. With a couple command inputs, the large screen soon came to life showcasing Blake standing alone in-front of the ticket booth. He was just wearing his normal clothes for his date.

"Wait! You didn't tell me what exactly to do for this challenge." Skell reminded him.

"Your job as co-host is to watch over the contestants, right? Well, most of them are out here so you better get to watching." Chris answered him without even looking away from the screen.

"Well, ain't that boring." Skell let out a deep sigh.

"Not my problem." Chris snickered. "Anyways, its time for our audience to see what's going on i side the virtual world." The host pressed a button on his panel and soon the view shifted to inside the virtual world.

Inside the virtual world now, Blake was just standing outside the virtual zoo in the midst of a busy AI crowd walking in and out. He looked rather tensed for it was his first time going on a date. After a while of waiting he soon saw Alysson walking towards. His jaw dropped the moment he saw what Alysson wore flr their date.

"You like it?" Alysson asked with a cute smile. Alysson wore complete female safari outfit but the blouse was tied in the middle to expose Alysson's abdomen while the jean shorts were folded all the way up Alysson's thighs. Atop their head was a green alligator cap with small teeth like points hanging down the rim to form the snout. "Chris told me to wear anything I want for our dates." Alysson giggled.

"Umm, uhh..." Blake was still completely speechless. Alysson just kept on giggling due to how cute it looked.

"Let's go, Romeo. Otherwise we might miss all the cute animal shows inside." Alysson took Blake by the hand and dragged him towards the front gate. They lined up with all the other AI tourists right at the ticket booth to grab their tickets. As they reached the front of the line, Blake was surprised to see who was inside the ticket booth and handing out the tickets.

"Chef? What are you doing in-here for?" Blake blinked at him, still clearly surprised to see him here.

"None of your business, maggot." Chef said dismissively. He then handed out two tickets for the both of them. "Now head on in and get your date started." He growled at them. Not wanting to get in Chef's bad side, Blake quickly grabbed the tickets, gave him a quick nod, and headed on inside with Alysson just trailing behind.

Pass the front gate of the zoo now, a number of small stalls and boutiques surrounded them all filled with various items. Placed in the midst of everything by the front gate was a large fountain. A whale with it's tail arched above its body was the centre piece. Water came rushing out from both its blow hole and mouth.

"Wow! This place doesn't compare to the zoo we have back home." Blake looked quite astonished to everything he saw. "So what do you want to do first?" He asked Alysson who was clinging on to his arm. Looking towards his date now he noticed that Alysson was starring longingly off to the side. Looking to where Alysson was looking towards he soon saw what Alysson wanted to do first. Right across from them he saw a couple getting their picture taken with someone wearing a cute lion costume with a red bowtie and black top hat by a female staff personnel wearing a safari outfit as well.

"You want to take a picture with that lion, do you?" Blake now asked his date. Alysson hearing this quickly beamed with excitement.

"Oh my god, yes!" Alysson said excitedly. "Let's hurry before other people beat us to it." Alysson pointed towards the lion and was practically dragging Blake while doing so.

"Okay. Okay. No need to rush. We have the whole day before us." Blake said with a small smile as they walked together towards the lion. As the two approached the lion, it did a cute little dance in-front of them ending with both of it's arms open. Alysson finding this quite entertaining just giggled for a bit before standing underneath the lion's right arm. Blake quickly followed by standing on it's left. The staff personnel soon took their picture.

"Say cheese." The female personnel said right before taking their picture. After the shot was taken, the personnel pressed a button on the side of her camera and soon a slip of paper was ejected from small slit from underneath the camera. "Here you go sir. Just present this to the desk by the exit in order claim your picture before you leave." Explained the personal as she handed Blake the piece of paper. Blake took the paper and slipped it inside his pocket. With that done, both the lion and personnel left the scene.

"So, where to now Blake?" Alysson asked cutely and softly.

"Hmm, I don't know. Where do you want to go?" Blake asked her instead. Alysson just giggled at him.

"Playing safe huh?" Alysson said with a sweet smile. "Fine. Take me to where the sea lions are. I heard they're extremely cute." Alysson suggested.

"Alright. To the sea lions then!" Blake exclaimed proudly and loud. All the AIs that heard hi just looked at them weirdly before walking off. "Oops. Hehe..." Blake scratched the back of his head out of embarrassment. Alysson just started to giggle again.

"Come on, Romeo. Lets go before we get kicked out." Alysson held on to Blake's hand once more. They soon walked off together to where the sea lions are.

After a short while of walking, both Alysson and Blake made it to the sea lion enclosure. They held on to the railings as they watched the sea lion down below swim in its spacious pool. Another sea lion was spotted just resting on the platform next to the water.

"Aww. These sea lions look so cute! The way they waddle and slide on the ground as well as doing some neat tricks. Ah! I would do anything to have one as a pet!" Alysson beamed with excitement.

"They're okay I guess..." Blake just shrugged. Alysson over hearing this decided to press up against his arm and looked up at him with a pouting face.

"What do you mean they're just 'okay'. They're freaking ADORABLE!" Alysson insisted but looked cute while doing so. Blake couldn't help but laugh for he couldn't take Alysson seriously. "What's so funny?"

"Oh nothing. I just can't take you seriously with that face you're making." Blake started to laugh a bit once more. "You just look cute by doing so." He now said with a playful grin. Alysson's face turned bright red and just looked away with both arms crossed.

"Hmph. Stupide." Alysson looked a bit flustered now. Blake soon got worried for he might have just screwed up.

"Damnit! I was doing quite good as well!" Blake cursed himself in thought. He soon heard the speakers starting to act up.

"Attention everyone!" An announcement was soon heard. "The sea lion show is about to begin in a couple of minutes! Please be seated at the front of the stage by then. Thank you!" The announcement ended.

"Perfect!" Blake thought after hearing this. He soon approached Alysson and placed a hand on his date's shoulder. "Hey Alysson, the sea lion show is about to begin. Want to go watch?" Blake asked in a soft yet sweet tone that he could manage. Alysson just brushed of his hand.

"Hmph. Fine." Alysson answered back without even looking back at him. The former then held out their right hand behind them for Blake to hold. The latter though didn't know what this meant. "What? Are you not going to take me there?" Alysson looked a bit impatient now. Blake soon realized what he had to do now.

"Oh, umm, right. Lets go." He soon held Alysson's hand and took them both to the open stage where the sea lion show was held. As the two reached the bleachers, they sat down on the front seats nearest to the stage. After a short while the bleachers were soon filled with other people.

"Thank you everyone for joining us for today's show." A voice said through the speakers. "Now, without further ado, its Showtime!" The crowd started to cheer. A sea lion soon slid out from backstage. It then did a backflip the moment it reached the centre. Moments later, Chef came running out from backstage as well to stand next to the sea lion.

"What the? What is Chef doing here?" Blake asked in a soft tone. Alysson just lightly elbowed him.

"Shush! I'm trying to watch here!" Alysson scolded him softly. Blake just gave his date a weary smile.

The first trick Chef made the sea lion perform was making it wave at the crowd. The sea lion did as it was told to and started to wag it's right flipper at everyone. The crowd started to clap at this. For the sea lion's next trick, Chef brought out a hoop. Chef then commanded the sea lion to hop over in which it did. The crowd started to cheer again.

"Yay!" Alysson started clapping. Blake did the same but not as enthusiastically.

The next trick the sea lion did was for it to do a roll. As it finished performing, Chef soon tossed it a fish but instead of eating it the sea lion smacked it away with its back flippers and sent it flying towards Chef. The fish landed a direct hit on Chef's face and in turn caused him to fall down. The sea lion started clapping it's flippers together making the crowd laugh.

"Haha. Oh my god, that was hilarious." Alysson said while laughing.

"Yeah, I'll admit to that one." Blake answered back chuckling slightly.

Chef soon got up from the stage. He rubbed his face with his arm and brought out a ball from behind his back. Anger rushing through him now, he threw the ball the sea lion. The sea lion though managed to spike it back with it's back flippers. Chef got hit hard on the groin as a result.

"Oof. That has got to hurt." Blake said with a pained look on his face.

Chef then fell down on both knees before falling down face first. Two other staff members came in to carry him out. The sea lion started flapping it's flippers again making the crowd burst out in laughter once more. The sea lion soon did a couple nods of it's head to gesture a bow before the curtains closed. The crowd started to cheer once more.

"Thank you everyone for enjoying the show!" The speakers announced to the crowd. "But before you all go, we have to talk about something important." The curtains opened up to reveal the sea lion once more with various trash items on stage. Three thrash bins were seen behind the sea lion as well as a banner above saying the words reduce, reuse, and recycle. "You see..."

"Ugh...not this again..." Blake complained silently while the announcer was still talking. "They always habe these as a sort of half-time show."

"Well that's because they are important!" Alysson justified. "Especially if it means saving sea lions!"

"I know its important and cute and all but it gets so repetitive." Blake exasperated. "I've been to a couple zoos before and its always the same thing! Why can't they spice it up a notch?" He remarked. Alysson was about to say something else when the sound of small squealing was heard on stage."

"...Especially for the lives of these sea lion pups..." They heard from the announcer.

"Sea lion pups? Did they just say sea lion pups?!" Alysson suddenly stood up. Moments later three sea lion pups came flopping onto stage. "Oh mon dieu, ils sont si mignons!" Alysson exclaimed excitedly. One of the pups soon got close and Alysson picked it up. It licked Alysson's hand before starring back cutely. Alysson suddenly froze up in place.

"Uh, Alysson? Are you okay?" Blake said softly as he approached. He placed a hand on Alysson's shoulder. He looked at Alysson's face only to see his date starring deeply into the sea lion pup's eyes. Alysson taking notice of Blake soon gave him puppy dog eyes

"Puis-je le garder? S'il vous plaît! S'il vous plaît! S'il vous plaît!" Alysson started to beg. Blake didn't catch what Alysson begged him for.

"Umm, what?" Blake blinked. Alysson just kept starring at him without saying anything else and just presenting him with the pup. The prankster soon realized what his date meant.

"Oh I see. I'm sorry but I we can't bring it with us." Blake shook his head no. "And besides, I don't think its even legal for us to even keep one." He added in. With a sad look, Alysson placed the pup back on stage.

"Fine." Alysson pouted. The pup soon ran off. "Alright, lets go. We don't have much time left so we better wrap this date up!" Alysson said to him before leaving the area.

"Wait, what do you mean by that?" Blake chased after his date.

"Didn't Chris tell you that their is a time limit to this?" Alysson looked at him curiously. Blake just shook his head no. "What? Did you honestly think these dates would last the entire day?" Blake wasn't able to respond to that. Alysson started to giggle. "Now I get why you chose the zoo." Alysson just kept on laughing at him. Blake just felt a bit flustered by this.

"Hey! Its not my fault Chris didn't say anything!" Blake said in defence of himself. Alysson just continued to laugh at him.

"Oh mon, tu as l'air si adorable en ce moment." Alysson wiped away a tear and took in a deep breath. "Lets head on back, Romeo." Alysson winked. Moments later a beam of light showned right above them before transporting them out of virtual reality. Seconds later they were now seen exiting the pods at the same time.

"Did you guys have a fun time?" Chris asked them with a wide grin on his face.

"Yeah it was fun. I'm not sure about Blake though." Alysson said while giggling. Blake didn't say anything for he just walked on back to his team. Lucette suddenly clung on to his arm as he came and looking at him quite enviously. Blake though was oblivious enough not to understand why and just blinked at her.

"So, how would you rate this date? Is it a pass or nah?" Chris now asked Alysson.

"You know what, I'll give it to him. Mostly because he looks cute." Alysson answered flirtatiously. "I would even say he stole my heart~" Alysson now winked at him. Everyone just gave the prankster a judgemental look.

"You're not trying to steal Kazuo's girlfriend now are you?" Janet said accusingly. Blake was shocked to hear this.

"What?! I'm not like that! I swear!" Blake raised his hands up defensively. He soon heard Kazuo chuckling to himself. "Please Kazuo. You got to believe me!" He pleaded. "I don't even like Alysson!"

"Aww. That broke my heart to hear." Alysson frowned. "Because of that I'm going to take back that point."

"What? You can't just do that! Can she?" Blake looked at the host. Chris though just had a malicious grin on his face.

"Yes she can." The host answered while still grinning. "The scores are back to zero!" He declared. The dawn team just groaned at this.

"Good job, Blake. You just couldn't admit to your mistakes." Janet shook her head at him while making tsk sound. Mostly everyone from their team agreed with her.

"What? I- *sigh* Ah forget it. Fuck y'all." Blake stomped out of the room.

"Blake wait!" Lucette tried to go after him but got stopped by Skell who managed to grab on to her shoulder

"Don't try to go after him unless you want to get disqualified." The co-host said to her with a serious look. Lucette didn't say anything else and just stayed put.

(Confessional)

Blake: Whatever they said back there it's not all true. I'm not the type of guy that would steal someone else's girlfriend intentionally. Or unintentionally as a matter as well! If only that Janet hasn't spoken up then we would be leading with one point! *sigh* If we lose this I'm blaming it on her!

Paris: Perfect! Everyone now thinks Blake is some sort of player or something. Now Ginger and Lucette will think differently about him now! If not then at least they know Blake is bad at doing dates...Its not that I care or anything! Its just that its so pitiful to watch them really.

Alysson: Hmm, maybe I was a bit to rough on the poor guy. My mind was so wrapped around being called Kazuo's girlfriend that I couldn't help but act the role of actually being stolen by someone else even though I'm not. In all honesty I was sort of expecting him to do something random about it since he's well...Kazuo. Oh well, can't change it now. I wonder who's going to be my next date. *smiles*

Alice: Am I the only one that sees something wrong here? I mean if Alysson really is Kazuo's girlfriend or whatever then why is he so cool about this? There has got to be something more about that girl than just some flirty slut...What? Can't I be blunt and use that word? Its fairly obvious what she is by face value!...Oh please. Sugar coating will only lead to more misconceptions.

(End Confessional)

"Okay. Its time for the second date!" Chris announced to them. "Clint. Come on over for you're up next!"

"Clint? He sounds like he would make for a fine date. I wonder what he looks like?" Alysson started to ponder. Moments later Clint was now standing at the front of everyone. "Ooooh. I like you~" Alysson said very flirtatiously while slowly getting closer toward him. Clint wasn't phased by this at all and just shrugged Alysson off. "Hmm, the unflinching type as well. I'm going to have a lot of fun with you." Alysson started to giggle while whirling a finger on Clint's chest. Clint still wasn't bothered by this still.

"Break it up you two. Clint still has to choose his date location." Chris said while pulling Alysson away from him. With Clint now free, he soon went towards the console and started scrolling through locations. After a while of scrolling, he was soon surprised to one of the locations listed. Without much as a second thought, he chose the location and stepped away from the console. An image of a high school in the late afternoon setting was shown on screen.

"Hmm, a high school romance huh? A bit cliché but I'll take it." Alysson commented. "Especially to what they end up leading too. Un tel vilain garçon." Alysson giggled.

"Ah, I see you found one of our special locations." Chris pointed out with a grin on his face. Clint didn't say anything though. "Surprised? Well, I'll be speechless as well if I saw my high school listed on the database as well." The host soon let out a chuckle. "I would love to explain to you on how we were able to acquire such data about this place but I'm afraid we'll be running out of time. So chop chop and get this date started!" He motioned for them to get into the pods.

"I think I already know what I'm going to wear next." Alysson looked quite excited now. Clint didn't say anything and just entered the pod. Once both were inside the pods, the scene on the monitor now shows Clint standing outside the school gates. He was wearing his school uniform which consists of a light brown short sleeved dress shirt, a dark brown tie, and black pants. He was soon seen walking inside the school grounds.

"So where did you get the floor plans to his school? I was shocked as well when I found the data." Skell now asked his partner. Chris was just heard chuckling slightly.

"I'd rather place that on the down low for now." Chris answered him now. Skell just got slightly worried by this.

The scene now shifting to inside the school building showed Clint climbing up a staircase. As he reached the floor above, he soon started to walk down the halls. The late afternoon sun beaming through the hall windows giving the hallway an orange glow. After a while of silently walking Clint stopped in-front of a door with a sign reading "3C". Opening the door, inside the room is a computer lab with rows upon rows of monitors. He soon took notice of Alysson looking out through the window wearing the female version of his uniform. As he stepped inside and closed the door the latter now noticed him and gave the former a seductive look.

"Hey there. Chris said I'll be able find you here." Alysson walked slowly towards Clint. "So I waited. My...sen...pai." Alysson gave him small smile and a wink. "I also heard from Chris that you are the president of a computer club..." Both of Alysson's arms were now wrapped around Clint's neck. Clint was forced to take a step back due to the sudden grasp. "So what activities shall we do together my senpai?" Alysson whispered in a very provocative tone.

Clint, still keeping a composed look, just pushed Alysson away from him and walked on by. Alysson watching Clint walk away, watched as he sat down on a computer terminal at the back of the room. A small grin was shown on Alysson's face.

"Hmm, still not yet breaking huh? Let's see how long you'll last." Alysson moved towards Clint in a slow fashion with one hand being dragged against the tables. With Clint now close, Alysson sat down on the empty seat on Clint's left and watched what he was doing. Alysson saw that Clint was intently focused on playing a computer game and by the looks of it even winning hard as well.

"Mind if I seat here?" Alysson asked. Clint didn't give a response and just focused on his game. Alysson smiled and placed a hand on Clint's shoulder. "You know, its only the two of us up here with no one else in sight." Alysson now started tracing a finger down Clint's left arm and placed down a hand on top of his at the end. "We could do whatever we want you know? Without the risk of being caught." Alysson whispered the last part. Clint froze for a second but managed to shrug it off and ignore his date. He shook of their hand and just continued on playing. Alysson noticed this and just started to laugh slightly.

"Was that hesitation I noticed, senpai?" Alysson said softly. Clint just pulled his seat closer to the table. "Is it because of the game you're playing? Maybe I should help you unwind if that's the case." Alysson undid Clint's tie and proceeded to unbutton Clint's shirt but stopped on the fourth button. Alysson slightly pulled Clint's shirt apart and gently placed a hand on his chest. "Is that better?" Alysson giggled while caressing Clint's chest through his inner shirt. Clint just continued to heed Alysson no mind. Small beads of sweat started to drip down from Clint's head as he focused to play his game.

"Oh my! Is that sweat I see? Let me get that for you." Alysson slowly slid a hand down on to Clint's pants and started searching his left pocket. "Hmm, nothing. Maybe the other pocket perhaps?" Alysson tried to reach over to the other side but Clint stopped Alysson's hand before it could even move any further. Clint then started to wipe away his sweat with his shoulders before going back to playing his game. Alysson started to chuckle lightly at this.

"Oh Mr. Club president, you don't need to worry. I'm not the type that bites..." Alysson wrapped both arms around Clint's neck and got in close. "Unless you're into that." Alysson whispered softly into Clint's ear before giving it a small nibble. Clint tensed up after feeling that one but still manage to keep playing his game and not give in to Alysson's advances. Moments later bright flashes of red was emitted from Clint's screen signifying that he had been defeated. Clint just forcibly shoved the keyboard back under the desk and let out deep sigh of frustration. Another Malicious grin formed on Alysson's face.

"Oh my! Senpai. Did I cause that to happen?" Alysson gasped. "I'm such a naughty girl for causing this to happen. Since you're the club president its only fair that you should deal with naughty girls like me. So please, give this naughty girl the punishment she deserves." Alysson dropped down onto both knees on the floor. "You could even pin me against a window if you want." Alysson whispered in a sultry tone.

Clint, finally giving in, just pushed Alysson down onto the ground causing some of the nearby chairs to scatter. He then got up from his seat and stood over the latter while giving a sharp glare. Alysson seeing this was quivering slightly in fear but was heard chuckling at the same time. The former gave this no mind and knelt down on to one knee beside Alysson.

Alysson gulps, "S-so...is this the punishment you had in mind?" Alysson tried to reach a hand up on Clint's leg but Clint held on to Alysson's wrist and pulled it away. He then placed it down on the floor without letting go. Alysson made a pained expression but a small grin was shown upon at the same time. "So what are you waiting for my senpai? I won't fight back if that's what you are worrying about." Alysson said in a soft, alluring tone.

Clint, thinking heavily on what to do, just started to play with one of his date's long locks of hair while starring intently. After a short moment, the silence between them was soon interrupted when Chef suddenly barged in. Chef was shown wearing a security guard uniform with a flashlight in hand.

"What's with all the commotion in here?!" Chef yelled. He soon took notice of Clint at the back of the room. "You. What are you doing here boy? You should have went home already!" Chef scolded him. He then noticed the mess of chairs scattered all around. "And fix this mess before you leave or else!" He then walked out and slammed the door shut. Clint just stayed there looking a bit confused by all this.

"*sigh* If you didn't catch what he meant that just means our time is up. Chris told me before this all started that Chef will be watching over all the dates and interrupt us if we take up too much time in the most suitable fashion. In this case as a security guard." Alysson explained with a disappointed look. "And we were just getting to the good part too..." Alysson grumbled with a sad look. "Anyways, Chris, you can send us out now!" Alysson called out. Moments later both of them soon disappeared from the virtual world.

Back into the real world now, both Alysson and Clint got out of their respective pods at the same time. Everyone in the room was dead silent as they watched the former re-join his team. He felt a bit out-casted for even his team was starring at him differently but was surprised when Phoebe suddenly approached him.

"H-hey, are y-you okay?" The doll faced girl asked a bit shyly. "Y-you don't n-need to worry. No one h-here is against you. W-well...I'm not at least...Everyone was just s-surprised is all." Phoebe said without even looking directly at Clint. "S-so yeah umm uhh..." She didn't know what else to say and felt a bit embarrassed now. Clint seeing this couldn't help but feel a bit sympathetic for her. He soon started to pet Phoebe on the head which made her feel even more embarrassed and blushed.

"Aww...how sweet. Now I feel bad about seducing Clint so much." Alysson frowned. "Hmm, I wonder how much he feels for her?" Alysson started to ponder.

"Given the way he looks, I can give you a definitive answer to that." Nicholas answered plainly. Hearing this caught Alysson's full attention. Alysson leaned towards him and was about to say something but Nicholas interrupted before a word could be said. "Don't try to flirt with me. I'll arrest you on the spot if you do."

"Hmm...you're no fun at all!" Alysson pouted and crossed both arms. "But you're way to ravishing to pass up so I'll just let it slide." Alysson started nibbling onto a finger nail seductively while eyeing Nicholas. The latter now just rolled his eyes at this and shook his head.

"Hey Alysson you need to focus!" Chris snapped at Alysson. "You still need to determine whether or not the date was a success." He reminded. Alysson soon snapped back into reality.

"Oh, so sorry. Sherlock over here was just abiding my thoughts." Alysson explained. "Among other things at least."

"Yeah. Well, I don't care." Chris said dismissively. "Now tell me if it was a success or not so that we can get on with it." Chris was now getting impatient.

"Fine." Alysson answered before looking towards Clint once more. "Hmm, I'll give it to him. I did have fun after all." Alysson started giggling.

"How did I not see that one coming?" Chris just shook his head at himself. "Anyways, time for the next-"

"Wait! Why did Alysson call Nicholas Sherlock? Is he a detective or something?" Paris suddenly interrupted for she looked a bit nervous about something.

"Yeah. A private investigator to be exact." Chris answered. "I thought it would have been made clear already as to who he was since his name is pretty well known internationally." He now explained. "Well, to the police forces to be precise." He added. Paris calmed down a bit.

"Ah, I see. Never mind then. Sorry for the interruption." Paris gave a curt bow before heading towards the back of the room. Nicholas felt intrigue by this but kept to himself for now.

(Confessional)

Paris: Good thing Chris cleared that up. The investigators that came to me on that day were from Scotland yard and not from some silly P.I. group. For a moment though I thought my past came back to haunt me. Even if it did, I highly doubt some informal detective can out do England's best police force.

Nicholas: Hmm, she so easily dismissed me the moment Chris mentioned I wasn't from any 'formal' police force. Is that how confident she really is? Hmph. She mustn't have met a Blackburn yet.

(End Confessional)

"Time for the next date!" Chris announced. "Dylan. You're up next!" The host called the next contestant over. Dylan heard this and did what he was told. "He's a hard-core gamer if you must know." Chris added in. As Dylan joined them in the front, an idea soon popped into Alysson's mind.

"Well, I wouldn't exactly say that but yeah. Anyways, its a pleasure meeting you." He extended a hand forward to Alysson. The latter though just ignored this and didn't say anything. Alysson just examined the way the former looked and found nothing interesting about him.

"Hmm. Not exactly my type but it'll do I guess." Alysson said plainly. "Now hurry on up and choose a location so that we can get this over with." Alysson looked bored with him now.

"You guess? You can't just size me up just like that!" Dylan complained. Alysson didn't seem to care and just ignored him. Everyone was surprised with sudden change in character. "Are you even listening to me?"

"No." Alysson abruptly answered. "Now, are you going to choose the location or what?" Alysson was now getting impatient.

"Fine. I'll choose a location alright." Dylan made his way to the control panel in a huff. He sat down on the chair and quickly scrolled down all the choices. His eyes soon lit up the moment he found what he was looking for. "Perfect." A devious grin soon formed along Dylan's face. After a few seconds he soon got up from the chair and took a couple steps back. The large screen soon showed a pizzeria with a bear wearing a hat as a sign late at night.

"A pizza date? Is that really the best you could think off?" Alysson said to him mockingly. Dylan was just heard chuckling to himself.

"Its no ordinary pizza restaurant, Alysson. This place has animatronics in them!" Dylan answered with a devious smile. Alysson wasn't impressed by this.

"What are you? Twelve?" Alysson asked sarcastically. Dylan just replied with a shrug. Alysson sighed deeply, "Lets get this over with." Alysson walked towards the pod from earlier.

"Alright. Let's see if your heart can handle this date." Dylan started to faintly laugh deviously as he walked towards his pod. Both of them are now safely secured inside the pod.

(Confessional)

Dylan: Yup. She's Kazuo's girlfriend alright. Only someone like him would date a girl with a twisted personality. From being sweet and innocent to a full on bitch in a matter of seconds clearly screams psychopath. Now I'm curious on how these two even met in the first place...Wait! Scratch that. Knowing Kazuo its probably somewhere random. Like in some sort of uncharted place or something owned by some sketchy guy.

(End Confessional)

Inside the virtual world now, Dylan was just waiting outside the pizzeria's front doors. Only the bright lights being emitted through the glass doors and windows were the only places providing light around the area he was in.

"Where is she?" Dylan asked no one as he looked around the empty parking lot in-front of him. He just wore his regular outfit for his date except he brought along his sword with him. Moments later he soon spotted Alysson approaching from the distance. "Ah. There she is...seriously?" Dylan was left dumfounded as he saw what Alysson wore for their date.

"What? Why are you starring at me like that for?" Alysson raised a brow with both hands on both hips. Alysson was shown wearing a plaid, red cardigan with a black crop top underneath, ripped jean short shorts, and fishnet leggings. A reversed blue cap is placed on top of Alysson's head to finish things off. "And what's with the sword?"

"Oh. Umm...no reason. I just thought I would bring it to impress you is all." Dylan lied with a fake smile. "So are you impressed?" He now asked. Alysson though wasn't buying his lie.

"Impress me how?" Alysson looked quite skeptical now. "To compensate for your small di-"

"Anyways!" Dylan interrupted. "Lets head on in and order some pizza already. For I bet you're already starving after those two dates." He then held one of the doors open. "After you." He gestured for Alysson to walk in. Alysson just let out a sigh to this.

"Whatever." Alysson said before walking in. As soon as Alysson walked in, Dylan was heard lightly chuckling from under his breath.

"Lets see if you'll still have that smug look on your face after this." Dylan proceeded to lightly laugh a bit deviously.

"Are you going to head on in or what?" Alysson called from inside.

"Coming!" Dylan answered before walking on inside and closing the door.

Inside the pizzeria now, only Alysson and Dylan were the only two people inside the place except for three different animal animatronics on the front stage of the establishment. The animatronics on stage was a bear holding a microphone, a rabbit with a bowtie, and a duck wearing a bib. All three of them were just moving in-place as if they were dancing.

"Wow. Such a fantastic place to have a date." Alysson said with a bored tone. "You couldn't have chosen a better place than this." Alysson added in a very sarcastic way.

"Don't worry about it." Dylan assured. "I can assure to you that this place is a lot of fun than it seems." He smiled. "Now lets go and find us a seat. Maybe the ones next to the animatronics? That looks like a fun place to be!" Dylan suggested. Alysson just shrugged at this.

"Whatever." Alysson said before moving towards the empty seats near the front stage. Dylan just trailed slightly behind his date. As both of them finally got seated, Chef soon approached them with two menus in-hand. He wore a complete waiter outfit with a name tag on the side of his chest.

"What will it be?" Chef asked as he brought out a notepad and pen.

"Umm...one large pizza that is one half spicy jalapeno with cheese and bell peppers and the other half being full on cheese and pepperoni. "Dylan answered. Chef jus looked at him funny. "Oh! And a large coke as well." He added. Chef rolled his eyes and wrote down Dylan's order.

"And for the lady?" Chef asked Alysson this time.

"Hmm. A basket of fries will do. As well as an Iced tea." Alysson answered. Chef wrote this down as well.

"Eh. Yada yada yada. Your orders will be here in twenty to thirty minutes." Chef returned his pen and pad back into his pocket before walking off.

"That was an oddly specific order." Alysson commented on Dylan's order. "Can they even make all that?"

"Meh." Dylan shrugged. "Anyways, lets talk for the time being."

After half of an hour has passed, Chef soon came back pushing a cart with their food on top.

"Here you go kid. Your large custom pizza and drink." Chef placed a large platter down on the middle of the table with the pizza Dylan ordered. He then placed the drink right beside Dylan. "And a basket of fries with an iced tea for the girl." He then placed down Alysson order on the table. "Anything else you two might want?"

"Nope. I'm good." Dylan shook his head. Chef turned to face Alysson.

"Same here." Alysson answered.

"Good. Enjoy your meal then." Chef was about to walk off with his cart but Alysson suddenly stopped him.

"Wait! May I ask where the bathroom is though?" Alysson now asked. Chef just rolled his eyes and pointed down the hall.

"Its just down there. Next to the security guards office." Chef directed. "Is that all?"

"Yup. Thank you!" Alysson replied with a sweet smile. Chef just scoffed and walked on off back to the kitchen with the cart with him. With Chef now gone, Alysson got up and started walking towards the bathroom.

"Hey, what's with the sudden need for the bathroom?" Dylan asked just before Alysson could get far.

"And why would you want to know that?" Alysson leaned forward a bit with crossed arms.

"N-no reason...Just curious is all..." Dylan looked away from his date.

"Hmph. Pervert." Alysson said before leaving Dylan alone. As soon as Alysson left, the lights around Dylan started to flicker for a bit.

"Shit. Not now. Alysson needs to be here for this!" Dylan looked quite frustrated now. His expression suddenly changed as he heard some metallic screeching near by. He turned around to face the stage only to see the bear animatronic missing. "Not good at all." He reached behind for his sword only for his hand to bump into something metallic. "Shit."

The camera now shifted to follow Alysson walking down a poorly lit hallway. Alysson was soon shown passing by a small empty stage with the curtains spread wide open. Alysson decided to stop right in-front of it for a moment.

"Hmm. I wonder what this stage is for?" Alysson thought. "Must be for something special." Alysson concluded. A loud slam was suddenly heard down the hall. Alysson looking down the hall now saw two closed doors facing each other with only one of them having a window with light seeping through. "Oh, there's the bathroom!" Alysson now thought.

The camera skipping ahead of Alysson showed the bathroom door with the symbol being shined on by the light escaping through the door opposite to it. A symbol with both the male and female signs was placed on the door.

"Same sex bathroom. How convenient." Alysson walked inside the bathroom now with the door closing behind. As the camera watched the bathroom door for a few seconds, a shadow of a head with pointed ears suddenly appeared on the door. A shadow splatter covered it up seconds later.

Back in the main dining hall now the place was a complete mess for broken tables and chairs were scattered everywhere. Dylan was shown to be standing in the midst of it all with his sword raised in-front him. His clothes were slightly torn with some noticeable bruises all over his arms and some on his face. The lights kept flickering every now and then as he stood there waiting.

"Damn...I knew I should have worn my armour instead." He said with a pained look. "I never thought it would be this hard." He gritted his teeth. Standing right in-front of him was the bear animatronic just standing idly by. As the light flickered the bear kept moving ever so slightly towards him.

"Grr. Take this!" Dylan swung his sword down on to the machine but the light flicked once only to show it had caught the blade with one hand. With another flick Dylan was suddenly raised up from the collar of his shirt and feet swinging. "Gah...let go!" Dylan kicked but was to no use. With another flick of the light Dylan was sent flying across the room and hitting the wall hard. He groaned out in pain and coughed up some blood as a result.

"AAAAAH!" A high pitched screaming was soon heard down the hall from him.

"A-Alysson?..." Dylan picked up his sword and pushed himself up. "Ugh...I'm coming!..." Ne tried to run on over to where Alysson went but got forcefully pulled back by the animatronic after the lights flicked once. "D-damn...*cough*" The gamer collapsed on to the floor with his vision slowly getting blurry.

As the lights flickered once more, the animatronic was now standing over Dylan. Another flick and soon it held Dylan's sword in it's hand. Another and soon the blade was now raised above the animatronics head. Dylan seeing this couldn't focus much on it for his consciousness was slowly fading. With lights now turning off once more it no longer turned on again right after.

Back in the real world now Dylan qi0uickly got out of his pod the moment the glass pane opened jp. He fell down on to his knees and was breathing in heavily. Everyone was just starring at him shocked to see him like that.

"The fuck...was that!..." He said in between breaths. He looked up from his position only to see Alysson looking down on him with both arms crossed.

"Good job loser. You got us killed on our date!" Alysson glared at him. "What were you even thinking anyways? Putting us in some sort of murder restaurant!"

"It was just supposed to scare you alright!" Dylan argued back as he got back up on his feet. "My plan was to scare you and come in to save the day." He explained. "And because you were such a total bitch earlier." He grumbled.

"What was that!" Alysson confronted him and looked very irritated with him now. Dylan couldn't say anything and took a step back out of fear. Gasps was heard around them. "Next time, why don't yo-" Alysson was suddenly cut off by the sound of laughter. "Whats funny?" Alysson turned to see where it came from. Kazuo was the one spotted to be laughing. "Kazuo?"

"You can stop acting now Alysson. I think he already had enough." Kazuo said while trying to supress his laughter. He took in a deep breath to calm himself a bit. "And besides, the whole skater girl act doesn't suit you. Normal you is way more attractive anyways." He said with a modest smile. "And cuter as well. Heh."

"Uhh...mmm...Y-you r-really think s-so..." Alysson started to blush heavily. Dylan was speechless with the sudden shift in personality. "Hmm...now you're making me wish that all those proposals you made were real!" Alysson started complaining. Everyone couldn't believe what they just heard.

"Heh. You wish." Kazuo said under his breath.

"Wait. Hold on. Kazuo's engaged? Out of all the random things I've seen him do, hearing this tops it off." Alice shook her head at this. "Is this the reason why Alysson was called?"

"I don't know about you but I kinda find this oddly sweet." Laren commented.

"Yeah. I totally agree!" Lucette chimed in. She let out a long sigh. "I can only imagine Blake proposing." Ginger came over and suddenly smacked her at the back of the head. "Ow...what did I do this time?"

"Eh, I forgot to give you one when we first met Nicholas." Ginger shrugged. "You acting that way reminded me to give you one." She gave off a sly grin.

"Ugh. All this commotion just because some guy is getting hitched." Leonard slowly shook his head at everyone. "What's with women getting all excited when they hear about marriage anyways?" He asked to no one in particular. Nathan hearing this just gave him a shrug.

"Now now, Leonard. No need to get all toxic just because Phoebe doesn't like you." Paris joked. Leonard shot her with a piercing glare but Paris just kept on grinning.

"Hey...is Alysson really engaged to Kazuo?" Skell asked Chris in a hushed tone.

"Don't know don't care." Chris said plainly. "Anyways!" Chris clapped which got everyone's attention. "Lets get a move on! Alysson. Was Dylan successful or not?" No response came for Alysson was to busy idly standing around and daydreaming. "Alysson!"

"Huh. What?" Alysson snapped back into reality. "Oh. Right. The score." Alysson now remembered. "Eh. Didn't like it. I didn't even get to eat my fries either!" Alysson pouted.

"I'll take that as a failed then." Chris responded. "Making the scores still one to none! Advantage being on the dawn team!" He reminded. "Time for the next round to commence! Kazuo. Come on up for you're next!" He called the next contestant.

"Wait!" Alysson interrupted before Kazuo can even move. "Can Kazuo be last? Please?" Alysson pleaded with puppy eyes. "I want to savour this date more than anything!"

"Fine. Just...stop starring at me like that. You're creeping me out!" Chris said finally giving in to Alysson's plea.

"Yippee!" Alysson jumped up in joy. "I'll pay you back in any way I can for this!" Alysson assured. "In. Any. Way." Alysson repeated in a more seductive manner.

"Yeah...I'll take a rain check on that." Chris cringed a bit. "Anyways. With that out of the way, its Leonard's turn next. Leonard. Come on over here!" He now called for the next contestant.

"Ugh. Fine." Leonard groaned. He then started walking towards the front.

"Leonard? What kind of guy is he though?" Alysson asked.

"Oh you'll like him." Chris smiled. "I heard from Blaineley that you like a man in charge. So, who better than an actual gang leader!" He exclaimed. "So what do you say to that?" The host now asked his special guest.

"Oh...you mean to tell me he's one of those street thugs?" Alysson looked a bit dissuaded now.

"Yeah. Is there a problem with that?" Leonard confronted Alysson.

"If that's the case then never mind. I'll pass on this one. I don't like dealing with brutes like him!" Alysson turned Leonard down.

"What? Is this a joke? You can't just deny me a challenge just like that!" Leonard complained. "How is that even fair anyways? You're not even giving me a chance here!" He now argued.

"I don't care." Alysson said plainly. "Now move out of the way for the next contestant."

"Like hell that'll happen!" Leonard roared. "We're going on this date now!" He demanded. Leonard then reached on over and forcefully pulled on Alysson's arm.

"Ah! Let go off me! That hurts!" Alysson tried to pull free but couldn't manage to.

"Chris. Do something!" Skell urged his partner to make a move. Chris just blocked off Skell with his right arm.

"Cool it, Skell. Lets just see what happens next first." Chris said back to him with a devious looking grin on his face. Skell though, didn't like this idea at all but stayed put in his place still.

"Will you stop resisting already? You're giving me a shot at this and that's final!" Leonard demanded from Alysson.

"No!" The latter yelled back. Alysson then swiped away at Leonard's arm using the sharp nails on their hand.

"Gah!" The former now pulled his arm back to him. This caused Alysson to stumble down on to the floor. "Why you little...!" He suddenly gasped as he felt a cold metallic object prod at the back of his neck.

"Okay, that's enough now. I won't stand any longer to such insulant misbehaviour!" Nicholas said from behind Leonard. Everyone in the room was speechless to see Nicholas pointing an actual gun behind Leonard's head. "Now. Why don't we just calm down and accept the fact that you won't be given a chance. Resist and I'll just have to blow your brains out." The detective calmly threatened.

"Hmph. I doubt you even have the guts to do so." Leonard answered back.

Nicholas pulled back on his revolver's hammer making a click sound. "Try me."

"Leonard. I suggest you back off now. Nicholas here is not messing around." Chris now warned. "Believe me. I've seen him do way more messed up stuff in his season." He started chuckling to himself. "So what's it going to be Leonard? That choice is yours."

Both Nicholas and Leonard now just stood their motionless and unflinching as they waited for the other to move. Nicholas' hold on his gun just kept getting tighter with each passing second waiting for any signs of resistance. Moments later, Leonard just gave up on his stand and took a slight step forward.

"Fine. Whatever. I don't care any more." The former said in a low tone. The latter now pulled back his gun and placed it back in it's holster. "I'm outta here." Leonard brushed passed everyone in the room with both hands in his pocket. He pushed open the doors and stepped out. Silence filled the room with only Alysson's light whimpering to be heard.

"*sigh* Get up Alysson. You still have your duties to perform." Nicholas extended a hand over to his snivelling companion. Alysson noticing this just wiped away the tears before grabbing on to Nicholas' hand.

"*sniff* T-thanks..." Alysson said while getting up. Both of Alysson's eyes were still red due to all the crying. "I-I just need a moment for myself though. Hold on." Alysson quickly exited the building. Everyone just watched the special guest walk on out without any form of resistance.

"Aww. Poor girl. Who knew Leonard had it in him to actually rough up a Alysson like that." Laren said with a frown.

"Yeah. Someone should really teach that guy a lesson on how to treat a girl right." Ginger added in. "What really bites though is that we teased Phoebe on to him." She now shook her head.

"Hey Kazuo. Come on over here for a bit." Skell called. Kazuo looked interested and walked on over.

"What do you need?" Kazuo asked with a slight grin.

"Listen, I need you to go on over and check up on Alysson." The co-host now answered. "If things calmed down; get Alysson back here ASAP!"

"But why ask me though? Why not just send Mr. Smooth detective here instead? You've seen how Alysson easily swooned over him." Kazuo pointed out to him.

"Because I'm not asking you. I'm ordering you. Now go or otherwise I'll disqualify you on the spot." Skell answered back in a much more serious tone.

"Alright. No need to tell me twice." Kazuo turned his back to Skell now and started walking towards the exit. "See you all in a bit." He gave everyone a back-handed wave just before he left.

"You do know Kazuo has a point?" Chris judged Skell's decision. He still had a notable grin on his face.

"Shut up. I know what I'm doing!" Skell answered. "I hope so at least..." He thought.

(Confessionals)

Leonard: I can't take it anymore! No matter what I do it feels like everything is stacked against me! With every passing challenge my failures just keeps on getting worsen every time. I sometimes even wonder why I'm still in the running for this! Is it because they see me as a liability rather than a threat? Are they just keeping me around because I'm just that easy to boot? I just...*sigh* You know what? Fuck it. That's what! If I end up losing before merge then so be it. If not then I'll just have to hit them hard to make them regret not kicking me out when they had the chance!

Kazuo: It's not even passed noon and yet a whole lot of interesting drama has ensued. And we're not even done with the first half of the challenge to top things off! Also, I just want to clarify on something before a lot of crazy rumours get out of hand. Me and Alysson aren't actually engaged. We just did it to get some free shit. Okay. Enough stalling. Time to confront that drama queen.

(End Confessional)

Half an hour has passed since Kazuo has left to find Alysson. Skell was shown to be anxiously walking back and forth in-front of everyone while Chris just sat on his chair with his legs crossed. Nathan was standing next to Chris for he was the next one to do the challenge.

"What's taking them so long? What are they doing out there anyways? Skell pondered as he continued his anxious pacing. Chris just gave him a shrug as a response.

As if on cue, both Alysson and Kazuo walked inside the building. The former though was clinging on tightly on to the latter's right arm while looking a bit flushed. Alysson's head was just resting Kazuo's shoulder as they walked.

"Hey guys." Kazuo greeted. "Took us a while but we're finally back! Alysson here took a while to stop crying." He explained for the both of them.

"Yeah. I'm so sorry about that." Alysson gave everyone a low bow. "But I'm here now and ready for my next date!" Alysson gave everyone a cheery smile. "And I think that cute boy over there is who I'm going out with next." Alysson pointed towards Nathan with a seductive look. Nathan just gave a shy wave in return.

"Yeah. Now come on over here so that we can finally begin." Chris motioned for Alysson to step on forward. "And as for you." He now turned his chair to face Nathan. "Go on and choose your location."

Nathan replied with a quick nod before walking towards the control panel. He quickly scrolled down the available locations while carefully scanning each one. Moments later his quick scrolling has stopped and pressed a button on the panel. On the monitor now showed a wide building with a cantered triangular roof and a staircase leading up to it's entrance. A statue of the lion was placed on each side of the staircase. A sign was carved just above the main doorway with the words "Public Library" written on it.

"A library?" Alysson looked confused. "What are we going to do there exactly?"

"Up to you really. I just chose this place because I feel more comfortable around books than people really." Nathan meekly answered.

"Okay then..." Alysson replied. Alysson's eyes suddenly widened for an idea suddenly came. A small grin soon formed. "I'll be expecting you inside later then." Alysson walked passed Nathan and quickly approached the pod. "*hic* Sorry. My bad. Hehe..." Alysson apologized before entering the pod.

Nathan though was reluctant to move from his spot. After a short while he drew in a deep breath and exhaled it all out. He then marched towards the empty pod and hopped on in. The glass pane closed in on him and he quickly fell asleep. The monitor lit up seconds later to show him at the bottom of the staircase while wearing his regular outfit as well.

"So Kazuo, how did you calm Alysson down?" Skell asked him now. Kazuo just chuckled and gave him a small smile.

"Well, it took lots of ice pops for starters." Kazuo answered. "Oh! And one more thing." He started searching inside his pocket. Moments later he held his fist right in-front of Skell.

"What's this?" Skell placed his palm underneath Kazuo's hand. The latter now opened up his hand and dropped a broken lock and hinges on the formers palm.

"Tell Chef he's going to need a new lock for his freezer...and for his liquor box as well." Kazuo said with a wide grin. Skell was left both surprised and speechless by this.

"God...save that poor kid's soul..." Skell feared for Nathan.

(Confessional)

Nathan: Okay. I sort of lied a bit as to why I chose the library. The main reason being is that I've picked up a few things from Clint's date since he was only one who received a point. My plan is to simply stay in my comfort zone and try to ignore all of Alysson's advances like what Clint did. The hard part though being that of actually applying it. Hopefully this plan of works for the better since I'm the last chance my team has to receive a point for the first half.

Skell: Welp...poor Nathan I guess. Not only is he dealing with all of the sexual advances. He's also dealing with Alysson being drunk! I wonder how this'll affect the show's rating after Nathan's date is shown?

Alysson: *hic* Hehe...Kazuo sure did make a good point...going on a date half drunk would make for a fun challenge. Haha! *hic* I just hope...I can keep it together. Otherwise...heh...let's just say you'll just have to use your imaginations. *winks*

(End Confessional)

Back inside the virtual world now, Nathan was just abiding his time standing around outside the library's main entrance. His eyes were scanning around the empty street in order to spot Alysson and prepare himself for what's to come. Moments later he spotted his date-to-be walking in from the left side of the street. The latter's movements though were a bit wobbly raising some concerns for the former as his date made it to the bottom of the staircase.

"Hi!" Alysson waved and sounded all cheery. Alysson wore a plain white blouse underneath a black coat, a black tube skirt, and black heels. "*hic* Whoa!" Alysson stumbled forward while attempting to climb the stairs. "Ouch...ah. A little help here?"

Nathan seeing this quickly ran down the stairs. He lifted Alysson up and placed an arm around his own shoulders. They both slowly climbed up the stairs and entered the library together.

Inside the library held a massive collection of books and other works of literature all placed on rows upon rows of shelves. Stairs leading all the way up to multiple floors held even more books for them to read through. Placed on the centre of it all was a large globe with the earth slowly rotating on it's mantle. Nathan walked ahead of Alysson to marvel at the sight of it all.

"Wow...this place looks wonderful!" Nathan exclaimed looking quite awestruck.

"Shush! Keep quiet!" Chef's voice was heard scolding him. Nathan turning his head around saw Chef glaring at then while wearing an office worker's uniform with a pair of rectangular glasses. A name tag with his name written on it had the word "librarian" written underneath it. Nathan was about to say something but Chef snapped at him before even forming the words. "I don't want to hear it!" He said sternly. "Just keep quiet so that I don't have to throw you out. Got that?" Nathan just gave the man a quick nod. Without saying anything else, Chef walked off.

With Chef now gone Nathan let out a sigh of relief for that possible challenge ending scenario was now over. Composing himself now he looked behind him in attempt to rejoin Alysson only find his date gone.

"This is not good." Nathan felt panicked as he scanned all over the place. Moments later he found Alysson walking down a line of shelves up on the second floor. Without a moment to lose he quickly chased after his date with his foot steps echoing throughout the halls.

"Hey! No running!" Chef was heard yelling angrily at him. This caused Nathan to flinch and stop just before heading up the stairs. "Good. That'll be your last warning before I throw you out of here!" Chef warned him from off-screen. Nathan wanted to say something but quickly changed his mind and faced back up the stairs. He ascended the stairs as quickly and quietly as possible before finally reaching the top.

"Now, where did she go?" Nathan thought while moving pass several rows of book shelves. He soon came to a stop the moment he reached where he last saw Alysson. "I hope this doesn't affect my team's chances of winning." With a worried look, he entered the isle and followed down the narrow path before him. Nathan looked down every gap between the shelves to see if he could spot his date but had no luck in doing so. Moments later he finally reached the end with only a closed high window right in-front of him.

"*sigh* No luck at all." Nathan said to himself with his head held low.

"Looking for someone?" A soft voice said to him from behind. Nathan quickly turned behind him only to see Alysson leaning slightly forward with a lustfilled stare and a small grin. The latter's face was slightly red due to all the liquor.

"Uhh...A-Alysson. Are you alright? You don't seem to look well?" The former pointed out as he noticed the state Alysson was in. Alysson's grin only grew wider at the mention of this.

"I don't know...Am I?" Alysson got in closer. Nathan took a step back but his back was already pressed against the window. "Maybe you should place a hand on me and check?" Alysson said in a rather suggestive tone.

"I-I don't think that's necessary." Nathan nervously answered. "And please, can you move back a bit? You're getting awfully close." He pleaded now. This only enticed Alysson to draw in even closer. "Wh-what are you doing?" He asked. Both of their faces were now clowe to where they can feel each others breath.

"Kiss me." Alysson whispered.

"W-what?" Nathan was now sweating bullets.

"I said kiss me." Alysson repeated in a more seductive tone.

"I-I don't think that's a good idea! I mean we just mmmph..." Nathan was interrupted when Alysson suddenly pulled him in for a kiss. They pulled away from each other moments later.

"You talk to much...you know that?" Alysson said before pulling Nathan back in for another long kiss.

Back outside the real word everyone's jaws, except Kazuo's, all dropped to what they all just watched. All the volume was off so nothing can be heard from the other end. An awkward silence filled the room for no one wanted to say or do anything about it.

"By the gods...I can't watch this anymore! Aaah!" Skell yelled as he placed both hands to cover his eyes.

"As long as I don't here it I don't care!" Chris answered back with his back and chair facing away from the monitor.

"What's wrong with those two? Its not like this is the first time they watched someone kiss someone else!" Ginger crossed her arms at them. Laren, who was standing behind her, just shrugged.

"Hey Kazuo. How come you're so chill by this? That's your fucking future wife for crying out loud!" Alice confronted Kazuo.

"Eh. What happens happens." Kazuo shrugged. "I'm more interested on what's going to happen next. Alysson is drunk afterall." He said with a small grin. This only pissed Alice off even more.

"She's what?" Alice was surprised to hear this.

"Umm, Kazuo. Sorry to interruput but you need to see this." Lucette urged him as she got close to the two. The camera now showing the screen once more showed Alysson breaking away from Nathan and just gave him a lusful look. Alysson then knelt down in-front of him while Nathan was way to stunned to move at all.

"Uhh, what is Alysson doing?" Alice asked. The scene on the monitor panned down a bit to reveal Alysson slowly attempting to undo Nathan's belt. Alice turned red after seeing this. "Nope. Nope. I'm not watching that." She looked away. Lucette though just had her eyes covered at this point. Kazuo though was just simply laughing at the two's reactions.

"Ah!" Phoebe was heard getting startled at the side. The camera pointing towards her now showed Paris standing in-front of Phoebe with both hands blocking Phoebe's eyes.

"No Phoebe. You are way to young to watch this!" Paris scolded her.

"B-b-but I..."

"No buts!" Paris said assertively. "Hey Skell! Do something about this!" She yelled at the co-host. Skell hearing this removed his hands from his eyes and watched the monitor to see what was happening. On the monitor now showed Alysson already finished with undoing Nathan's belt and pant button and was just about to pull down on the zipper.

"Nope! This is not happening!" Skell quickly scrambled towards the control panel. He input in a couple commands before quickly pressing down on a flashing red button. Moments later the monitor shutted off and both pods containing the two suddenly opened.

"Ugh...what happened?" Alysson groaned while wobbly walking out of the pod. "And why does my head feel dizzy?"

"Damn...same here..." Nathan chimed in as he to got out of the pod feeling light headed as well.

"That's because Skell here forcefully pulled you two out of the virtual world." Chris answered them. "You two are lucky to only feel dizziness. When I tested this out on an intern before the season started he succumbed to extreme nausea." He explained to them.

"But why did you pull us out though?" Alysson now asked. "This headache I'm feeling makes it hard to remember."

"That's because you were about to give Nathan's little whistle here a blow!" Skell now answered. Nathan turned pale after hearing this.

"W-what?" He stammered.

"Aww really? How come you stopped me from doing so?" Alysson frowned.

"Because we can't show that on national tv!" Skell roared back.

"You can always censor it." Alysson said back with a playful grin. Skell though just kept a strong glare back at Alysson. "What? I was only kidding. No need to get all aggressive now." Alysson giggled. "Unless being aggressive is what you're into." Alysson added in a bit provocatively

"No. Now just get on with your thing and score how well the date went." Skell looked unamused with Alysson.

"Fine. Fine. No need to tell me twice." Alysson said with small smile and looked towards Nathan. "Hmm. Since I did decide to go all the way to give him a blowjob I might as well give the round to him." Alysson declared.

"You were drunk for the most of it. Are you sure about that?" Chris questioned. Alysson just nodded with a hum in return. "Okay. That makes the scores tied. Nathan. You may now return to your team." He guided Nathan with his hand. Nathan nodded without making a sound. "Kazuo. Its your turn now." Chris called in a bored tone.

"Yippee! I get to go on a date with Kazuo again!" Alysson squealed. As soon as Kazuo got all the way to the front of everyone, Alysson suddenly pounced on to him and latched on to Kazuo's arm. "So, where are you going to take me this time?"

"Somewhere fun." Kazuo answered with a mischievous grin. "Now let go of me. Otherwise it'll ruin the surprise."

"Aww. Fine." Alysson let go of Kazuo's arm. With Kazuo now free, he stepped forward towards the control panel and started to scroll through all the choices. He stopped moments later and entered in the choice he wanted.

"Done!" Kazuo exclaimed as he stepped away from the control panel. The scene on the monitor now showed a rustic looking restaurant with round wooden tables and chairs. Padded seats with square tables lined the walls of the place. And lastly, a bar area was seen at the back of the room with shelves filled with various liquors and drinks.

"A bar? But didn't we already have enough to drink a while ago?" Alysson gave Kazuo a confused look.

"Correction. You had enough to drink." Kazuo corrected. "Also. This a tavern and we all know what happens in taverns back then in the old days." He said with a wide grin. Alysson turned red after hearing this.

"Y-you mean...y-you w-want t-to..." Alysson felt all flustered and hot under the collar now. The former didn't say anything else and just walked towards the pods.

"I'll see you there, mon chéri." He said before entering the pod. Alysson just stood there, still frozen in place and deep in thought.

"Alysson." Chris called. No response. "Alysson." Still no response. "Alysson!"

"Huh, what?" Alysson finally snapped back into reality. "Oh. Right. The challenge." Alysson quickly went towards the empty pod and entered. A few seconds later the monitor now showed Kazuo standing inside the tavern by the doorway. He decided to wear his challenge clothing for his date.

(Confessional)

Kazuo: Okay. Time to see if my little experiment would work. I made Alysson drink earlier to see if drunkenness would carry over to the virtual world in which it did. Now time to see if getting drunk in the virtual world would carry over here in the real world.

Alysson: Me...and K-Kazuo...d-did he really mean what he said? Or am I just overthinking it? W-what am I even getting all worked up for? I mean its Kazuo. H-h-he does random stuff all the time so maybe I'm just over thinking it...right? Hmmm...what if he did mean what I thought? I d-don't know if I can even handle that! Foreplay maybe b-but that's as far as I am willing to go. M-maybe I should wear something cute for him just in case though.

(End Confessional)

Inside the virtual tavern, Kazuo was just sitting down on one of the bar stools. Standing over on the other side of table was Chef who was wearing a plain long sleeved collared shirt underneath a red velvet vest and a black bowtie. The former held a tall glass mug of beer while the latter was busy cleaning a glass with a piece of cloth.

"So tell me, bar keep, where are your maidens? I was supposed to be expecting one here." Kazuo asked before taking a large sip of his beer. "Hmm. Not as good as sake but it'll do." He says after placing down the near empty glass. "Another round please."

Chef hearing this just placed down what he was doing earlier underneath the table and grabbed Kazuo's glass. He placed it underneath a tap and beer started filling it up. Chef gave it back to Kazuo seconds later.

"Thank you!" Kazuo smiled as he took back his glass. He took a quick sip before placing it back down. "Now, about those maidens."

"You called? Mon maître." A soft voice suddenly out called from beside them. Kazuo, knowing full well who it was, just formed a small grin on his face and just continued on drinking. The camera panning to where the voice came from showed Alysson wearing a maid's outfit complete with white knee high socks and heels. Alysson held a silver platter close to their chest.

"Bar keep. I'll talk to you later." Kazuo spun his seat around before getting up. "Bring my drink for me." He told Alysson before walking on by.

"Oui, my maître." Alysson gave a small bow before picking up Kazuo's drink and balancing it on the platter with one hand.

"What do you even see in that boy." Chef asked without even looking up from his work.

"I'm more curious on what you don't." Alysson answered before leaving. Chef just grunted without saying anything else.

After a short and tedious walk Alysson soon made it to the new table Kazuo sat. Kazuo his was just busy reading his spell book while waiting

"Maître." The former spoke in a soft voice. The latter now looked up and saw Alysson standing there.

"Ah. Alysson. Asseyez-vous, s'il vous plaît." Kazuo closed his book and shifted closer to the wall.

"Oui, my maître." Alysson gave a courteous bow before placing Kazuo's drink down on the table and sitting down next to him. " Votre boisson, maître."

"Merci!" Kazuo took a long sip before placing it down half-empty. "*burps* Excusez-moi." He now rested his arm on top of the rail and behind Alysson's neck. Alysson just smiled and rested on top of Kazuo's shoulder with both eyes closed. "Qu'est-ce que tu fais?"

"Savourer ce moment." Alysson leaned in closer.

"I see." Kazuo took another quick drink. A thought soon came to him. "Alors dis-moi, crois-tu en la foi prédestinée?" He asked. Alysson just smiled.

"Si je le faisais, nous ne serions pas ici."

"Good to know." Kazuo took another drink. He soon felt the alcohol sinking in causing him to feel a bit light-headed. He shook it off and continued on talking. "Okay, dites-moi alors, pourquoi agissez-vous de cette façon?"

"Hmm. You know better than anyone else why, monsieur 'butterfly effect'." Alysson giggled. Kazuo laughed.

"Heh...you got me there." Kazuo drank once more until his glass became empty. He set it back down and pushed it away. "What do you hope in getting out of this anyway?"

"I don't know. To be with you finally? Like I've always wanted." Alysson nuzzled deep into Kazuo's neck. Kazuo feeling this just rested his head atop Alysson's.

"Is this a confession I here?." Kazuo lightly chuckled before rubbing his chin and mouth against Alysson's hair and head. "You do know you and I won't work out right? Given who you really are." He said with a muffled voice due to Alysson's hair.

"I know. So let me enjoy this, mon chérie Kazuo." Alysson wrapped an arm around Kazuo's chest. "Oh, and by the way. Comment ça se fait que tu n'as pas encore révélé mon secret? moi étant un garçon et tout." Alysson curiously asked.

"Wanted to play along." Kazuo answered. Alysson started giggling some more.

"This is why I like you." Alysson said sweetly.

"You're weird." Kazuo joked.

"You're the one to talk." Alysson said back with a small smile. "Now be still. Lets just enjoy this moment together."

"No! Now go get me more to drink!" Kazuo raised his glass up high. Alysson just laughed.

"Oui, maître." Alysson got up from his seat and took the glass. "Je reviens tout de suite." He said before walking off.

"Bring a second one with you too! I want you to join me for this round!" Kazuo insisted.

"Oui!" Alysson answered back.

(Confessional)

Kazuo: Here we go! Now the party begins! Yeah! Definitely not yet drunk!...I think? How did I even get in here anyways?

Alysson: Whoo! Kazuo sure is a fun drinking buddy! Maybe once this is all over I should invite him from time to time. And afterwards we can go to a motel or something and...oooh my heart is racing with excitement already!

(End confessional)

Back now in the real world all the remaining contestants had mixed looks on their faces as they watched the display in-front of them. The sound of tables and chairs breaking, fires burning, and glass shattering echoed throughout the room they were in.

"Wow. Those two sure are wild when drunk huh?" Laren asked Ginger who was standing right next to her.

"What did you expect? They're the most randomest couple I've ever seen!" Ginger claimed.

"Hey, at least we know Kazuo found someone he was meant to be with." The former smiled at the mention. "Unlike a certain someone I know." She motioned towards Alice who was standing across the room from them. Alice just had a disturbed and unsettled look as she watched the date in-progress.

"I doubt someone with a sharp of a tongue as her would settle for one really." Ginger concluded. An explosion soon blared out from the speakers.

"Hey! Put that down!" Chef's voice rang.

"Make me!" Kazuo's voice said back tauntingly. The sounds of flames roaring came afterwards

"Yeah! Show him who's boss, Kazuo!" Alysson cheered.

The camera now panned towards where Alice was standing. Disturbance was still written all over her face as she continued to watch on in silence.

"Um, Alice? Are you okay?" Janet approached her. "What's with that unsettling look you have?"

"Its nothing concerning. Its just that I'm learning a lot more about how messed up Kazuo really is." Alice shivered with a disgusted look. "Now I can't get that mental image out of my head."

"Um, what new things?" Janet asked with a confused look. "I gave up watching them the moment they started speaking whatever language that was." She explained.

"Its French." Alice pointed out. "And its a good thing you did as well. Otherwise you'll be mentally scared knowing about it."

"Oh come on. It can't be that bad. Tell me!" Janet insisted.

"You sure?" Alice gave her a questionable look. Janet just nodded. "Fine. I'll whisper it to you." Alice got in close for her mouth to be next to Janet's ear. As she continued on to tell her teammate about what she had learned, Janet's expression turned from curiosity into regret.

"You mean?"

"Yup." The former said with a nod. Janet looked towards the monitor to watch Kazuo and Alysson doing a drunken waltz around a struggling Chef encased in ice.

"Ew! Do you really think he does?" Janet questioned.

"To be honest I already gave up on trying to read Kazuo's intentions." Alice responded.

The camera now shifted towards the front to where the two hosts and Nicholas were. The three of them were just watching the monitor in silence.

"How long will this date last?" Skell asked Chris. "I don't think Chef can last any longer." The sound of Chef screaming soon rang out from the speakers. "Oof. That's got to hurt."

"Let's give them ten more minutes. This is fun to watch." Chris said while laughing. "What's the worst that can happen anyway?"

"Hey! Get back here!" Kazuo's voice yelled out.

"Go Kazuo! Go!" Alysson's voice cheered him on.

"W-wait! N-no!" Chef pleaded. A loud bonk sound soon got blasted out through the speakers.

"Ouch." The host said with a pained expression. "Okay. Other than that."

"Hey! Look at what I found!" Alysson exclaimed very excitedly. "A hose!"

"Quickly. Attach that thing to one of the beer faucets and attach the other end to his butt!" Kazuo insisted.

"Oui!" Alysson replied.

"Okay. That's enough. Skell. Get them out of there!" Chris commanded.

"I'm already on it." Skell quickly went to work on the panel. Moments later the screen turned off and both Alysson and Kazuo got ejected from their pods and fell on the floor. Both of them just groaned out in pain as a result

"Ugh...what happened?" Alysson asked with a hand on the side of his head.

"Maybe we destroyed the place so much that we got kicked out so hard that we even escaped the pods." Kazuo theorized while still a bit tipsy.

"Heh...you're funny Kazuo." The former laughed and the latter did as well. Everyone watched them as they just sat their laughing.

"Hey...wanna go back to the tent and see if they still have ice cream?" Kazuo suggested.

"Sure...I already know which popsicle to take as well." Alysson flirtatiously replied.

"Alright. Let's go!" Kazuo and Alysson soon walked out of the room and leaving everyone behind.

"Well that just happened." Skell said looking quite dumbfounded. "What do we do now?" He asked Chris. "Since you know, Kazuo just took of with our special guest."

"Nothing. We'll just have to move on with the next round." Chris declared.

"What about their scores?" Skell reminded.

"Alysson walked out right? We can just say that's a failed date." Chris answered back. Everyone from the diamond team was surprised to hear this with some of them not taking the news to kindly.

"What! That was more or less a successful date!" Alice argued. "You saw how much fun they had!" She added in.

"I agree!" Janet chimed in. "That at least counts for something!"

"I'm sorry ladies but Alysson has to declare the date as a succes. And since Alysson walked off with Kazuo without saying anything then that means its a fail." Chris explained to them with a devious grin. "Hey, look at the bright side. At least you all know who to blame now if you all end up losing." He laughed at them mockingly. "Anyways, the next round will begin shortly. Its almost lunch time and I bet all of your are tired from watching boring dates. Skell. Release Chef so that he may start cooking."

"Already on it." Skell replied while inputting in commands on the panel. Seconds later the pod holding Chef opened up with the mist flowing out. Chef flopped down on to the floor moments later and was lying there completely unconscious. His body looked to be aching with a lot of pain as well.

"Hmm. How unfortunate. Hey Nicholas, you received medical training right?" Chris asked the detective.

"You want me to treat him do you?" Nicholas read Chris' intention. The host didn't say anything but had a wide smile on his face. "*sigh* Fine. Where's the medical kit then?"

"I don't know. The stock room maybe?" Chris shrugged. Nicholas just face-palmed himself and sighed "Anyways. Everyone, you may all leave now. Just be back here in two hours alright?" Chris ordered them. "Oh, only the girls though since all of the guys are done. Well, except Janet." He explained. "You guys can watch if you want. Anyways, bye!"

"Wait! What about our food though?" Dylan asked. "What are we going to eat then? Since Chef here is knocked out!" He pointed out.

"Not my problem." Chris chuckled softly. "Ciao!" He waved before taking his leave. Everyone groaned out due to another day without lunch.

(Confessional)

Alice: Great! Kazuo's randomness just caused us our game once more! *sigh* Such a teammate to have. *shakes head* Not only that, he's quite sick in the head as well! I mean, he consented to trap of all things! Now I see why Chris invited Alysson over.

Janet: Ugh...Kazuo...what kind of sick fetishes do you even have? How far are you willing to go just to justify this whole butterfly effect shenanigan?

Kazuo: *still drunk* Experiment...success! Both me and Alysson...are still feeling the effects of intoxication even though what we drank wasn't real! I wonder how that works anyways? *banging on door*

*Alysson's voice* Hurry up Kazuo!...we still have lot's of ice cream to eat!...and you still owe me that popsicle of yours as well! *giggles*

*Kazuo* Okay!...wait, I mean not okay to that last one!

(End Confessional)

Two hours had already passed by now and all of the female participants are back inside of the building. The only men who were still inside are the two hosts and the special guest.

"So, how was lunch?" Chris asked them with a wide grin.

"Same as yesterday. Nothing!" Alice growled at him. Chris just laughed at her displeasure.

"Well, I hope you enjoyed it for y'all going to need the energy for your dates! Starting with you Alice!" Chris called her up. Alice just groaned and stepped on forward.

"Nice to meet you, Alice." Nicholas greeted with a smooth voice and a small smile.

"Y-yeah. Whatever." Alice scoffed and looked away while looking slightly red.

"Okay, Alice. Time for you to select your location!" Chris reminded her. Alice hearing this just pressed on forward towards the control panel. After a short while she soon stepped back with a location already selected. The large monitor now showed a very large and colourful tent. A large entrance sign with word "circus" was written on it.

"Hmm. As I thought." Nicholas said to himself. "Shall we be off?" He motioned for them to get a move on.

"Um, sure." Alice responded before walking towards an empty pod. Nicholas did the same and entered his own. Seconds later the screen now showed both of them standing right outside the entrance.

"Well, here we go folks! The first female date has now begun!" Chris said to the camera. "Let's see how well the girls will fare this time around." He chuckled softly.

(Confessional)

Nicholas: Unlike Alysson, I already knew what I'm getting into. I already made my research about these women before hand through some of my connections. I did this so that I won't be going in blind which in itself is a good thing. Because by doing so I was able to uncover a few things about each one. Especially one of them.

(End confessional)

Back again the virtual world Alice and Nicholas were shown walking inside the large tent. Both of them wore their regular outfits for their date. The inside of the tent was packed with AI audience members who were either already seated or still trying to find one.

"How about those seats over there?" Nicholas suggested as he pointed towards his lower left. The camera pointing to where he was looking at showed two empty seats in the middle of the stands and closest to the ring.

"I suggest somewhere a little higher. These seats over will be fine." Alice pointed towards the empty seats on their right.

"How come?" The latter asked in a curious tone.

"Unless you want to get sprayed on and get really wet, then be my guest. You'll know where to find me." The former plainly answered. The detective just chuckled softly.

"Fine. Ladies first." Nicholas offered in the same smooth tone as earlier. Alice scoffed and walked towards the seat.

"Whatever." She answered back while looking a bit flustered herself. She took a seat a couple feet away from the entrance and Nicholas sat down on the seat to her right.

"Attention ladies and gentlemen! The show is about to begin!" The announcer was heard through the speakers. Moments later all the lights shutted off while the spotlights just sporadically circled around the ring. A fast paced musical score started playing in the background and soon the ring master came marching out from the lower entrance in-between the seats. The lights focused down on him as he marched on towards the centre.

The ring master wore a black top-hat, a red-coat with golden chest padding, white trousers, and black shoes. A whip was attached to the side of his brown leather belt with a golden buckle while holding on to a cane on his left. His face was covered due to the lights beaming down on him. As the beat grew faster and higher he spread his arms wide open and slowly raised them up with it. As the beat continues on to rise along with his arms it soon cut-off suddenly and his arms stopped moving.

"Ladies and gents, this is the moment you've waited for." The ring master said in a soft singing voice as the beat started playing again. A lion soon came rushing after him and pounced. He ducked under the attack and tipped his hat forward. He cracked his whip as the lion came skidding to a stop. The crowd loved it and cheered.

"Wow. Is this how circuses do their intros now?" Alice asked with a judgemental look.

"Sadly, I can't answer that." Nicholas answered. "I don't normally do these sort of things."

The ring master continued on with singing his song as he and the lion moved around the ring along to the beat as if they were dancing to it. With every pounce the lion made, the ring master dodged with poise and grace. He cracked his whip every time the lion landed. This continued on for the next few minutes until his song was over and the lion was defeated. The crowd cheered at the display and ring master gave his bow.

"Did you enjoy that?" The ring master yelled at everyone. Everyone in the crowd yelled back their responses except for Nicholas and Alice who sat quietly on their seats. "Good. For there is still more to come!" He announced. Moments later performers came rushing inside the tent along with a number of different animals.

The crowd watched as all the different performances took place in the middle of the ring. Alice was just sitting quietly on her seat and looked to reminiscing about something. Nicholas taking notice of this, already formulated what to say to her for a knowing grin was shown on his face.

"So Alice, why decide to go to a circus for a date?" He asked. "I'm no expert on dating but I'm pretty sure places like these aren't meant for first dates." He explained himself.

"No reason. No one told us about this challenge so I just chose the first place at the top of my head that sounded like fun." Alice answered in a soft tone. She looked a bit down but wasn't to obvious.

"If so, then why do you look like you're regretting the decision?" The detective questioned her further.

"None of your business." Alice just brushed him off.

"Its about your mom ain't it?" Nicholas calmly pressed on. Alice hearing this was taken aback and surprised by this.

"What? How did you?"

"I'm a detective. Its my job to figure out clues and figure things out about you guys." Nicholas answered with a small smile. "Though under most normal circumstances it wouldn't really matter to me."

"If it doesn't matter to you then why bother researching about us then?" Alice confronted him about it.

"That's because Chris invited me." The detective calmly answered. "Chris wouldn't call me if he didn't have a reason. Just look at Alysson." He pointed out. "If he didn't then he would've just called in Wesley instead."

"Wesley? Who's that?" Alice looked confused by this.

"He's just an acquaintance of mine." Nicholas clarified.

"Okay then. So you're meaning to tell me that all of us girls here have something in common that warranted Chris to get a detective?" Alice summarized everything Nicholas told her.

"Not all of you. Just some in particular." Nicholas corrected.

"I see. Now that you know my mom is missing. What are you going to do about it then?" Alice now asked him.

"Don't worry. I already got one of my low ranking officers on it." Nicholas calmly answered.

"I don't know if I should be happy to hear that or treat that as an insult." Alice narrowed her eyes at him.

"You underestimate the Blackburns." Nicholas said back. "And besides, I'm not interested in missing person cases. Unless the results comes in as murder." He added. Alice felt her heart stop for a moment as she heard this. "So if you see me one day in your doorstep once this is all over, you'll know what to expect."

"Thank you everybody and have a pleasant evening!" The ring master said his fare well to the crowd. Everyone started cheering for him as everyone on the ring made their exit.

"Well, that's our cue. I'll see you outside." Nicholas got up from his seat and walked off towards the exit. Alice just stayed in her seat looking straight at the ground.

(Confessional)

Alice: No. That can't be! I won't accept the fact that my mom could possibly be dead out there somewhere! Grr. Screw Chris for inviting that hot-shot of a detective over! I hate them fucking both!

(End Confessional)

Back outside the real world now, both Nicholas and Alice were already out of their pods. The latter though was silent as she slowly walked back to her team. Her thoughts were still wrapped around what Nicholas had said to her while in the virtual world.

"Alice? Are you okay?" Laren asked her with a worried look on her face. Alice just brushed passed her. "Alice?"

"Wow. What an upset! One of the fiercest competitor in this game got easily shaken by Nicholas. I wonder how the others will fare up well against him?" Chris gave off a devious looking grin. "Nicholas. How would you rate the date?" He now asked the detective.

"Objectively speaking, it was a fail." Nicholas answered with a serious look. All the girls were surprised to hear this.

"Care to elaborate?" Chris asked again.

"Well. The interactions were a bit cold. Not only that, but because of how reliant the date is on the enjoyment of both parties on something uncontrollable. The choice of location was way too impractical due to the numerous safety hazards present. And the fact that the place smelled a bit rancid due to the number of different animals present. And that is just some of it." Nicholas ended his points. "Need I go on?"

Everyone was just left speechless on the detectives deductions.

"No. No need. I think you already melted everyone's brains with that." Chris replied. "Well, you heard it here. The date was a fail and the scores are still tied!" He announced. "Now its about time we get the second date started! You're up next, Ginger!"

"Finally! My time to shine!" Ginger proudly exclaimed as she walked up to the front. "If its near endless fun and excitement you want then I know the perfect place for that!" She walked up to the control panel and quickly made her selection. The monitor now showed an arcade filled with various types of games.

"An arcade date. Not my type of place but it'll do." Nicholas commented. "Shall we be off?"

"Uhh, sure..." Ginger hesitantly answered. Both of them soon got in there respective pods. The scene on the monitor now showed both of them standing outside the arcade's entrance.

(Confessional)

Ginger: I won't let that Nicholas dude intimidate me! I'll definitely be the one coming out on top. I can assure you all that!

(End confessional)

Inside the virtual world, both Nicholas and Ginger were already inside the arcade.

"Yo. This place looks fun!" Ginger said very excitedly as she scanned the arcade. "I wonder which game we should try out first?" She pondered.

"Hold on there." Nicholas stopped her. "Correct me if I'm wrong but aren't we supposed to get tokens first?" He pointed out.

"Oh right. Lets go get tokens first then we play." The latter now started walking towards the prize counter at the back of the arcade. "Wait right here. I'll be right back!" She said before leaving

"Good morning, miss. How may I help you?" A female employee greeted her.

"Some tokens please!" Ginger requested.

"Here you go, miss." The employee replied as she brought out a small pouch full of tokens.

"Thank you!" Ginger grabbed the pouch and walked back to where she left Nicholas. "Hey Nicholas, I got the...Nicholas?" She looked around only to see him gone.

"Over here!" Nicholas called. Ginger looking to where his voice came from saw him standing in-front of a large monitor playing a cut-scene of two game characters shooting at enemies. Two pedestals holding a controller in the shape of a hand gun was placed on top of it. A large pedal was placed underneath each pedestal. Nicholas had an intrigued look on his face as he watched the cut-scene.

"Hey Nicholas, want to try out this game first?" Ginger asked as she approached him. "I've played similar games like this before and they're a lot of fun!" She said happily.

"Okay. I'll give it a shot." Nicholas agreed.

"Great!" The latter exclaimed as she inserted two tokens into each pedestal. A mode select screen soon popped up on the monitor. Solo and link play were the only two options available.

"I assume you just simply aim and shoot with this, right?" The former asked as he picked up his gun.

"Yup. Like so." Ginger picked up hers and pulled the trigger on the link play option. The game soon started with it's opening cut-scene. "Also, if you want to keep shooting just step on the pedal. If you want to reload and use cover just stop stepping on it." She knowingly explained to him. "Got that?"

"Noted." Nicholas nodded with a small smile. The cut-scene soon ended and the game begun. Swarms of enemy gunners filled the screen while they're characters are hidden behind cover.

"Want me to go easy on you since this is your fist time?" Ginger asked.

"No need." Nicholas replied.

"Okay then. Just don't get all to sore knowing that I-"

"Move! Move! Move!" The game's speakers blared out cutting Ginger off as their characters started to move automatically. The score on screen showed Nicholas already have one thousand points while Ginger still have none.

"How did you..." Ginger looked completely mystified as she watched Nicholas easily clear out the next stage with perfect accuracy. The points are now two thousand to zero. The third stage of the level now played out.

"Are you going to play or just stand their and watch?" Nicholas asked her now. Ginger snapped out of the trance she was in and aimed her gun at the screen.

"Of course! You just got lucky because this was the first level. I'll show you how its done." Ginger soon started shooting at the enemies but her shots weren't as accurate as Nicholas and even loss a life in the process. "Dammit!" She cursed. Nicholas didn't say anything and just continued on playing. The level quickly ended and the scores now read two thousand seven hundred and fifty to two hundred and fifty.

The next level now played out and both of them quickly dispatched all of the enemy grunts. Nicholas managed to press on with the level while maintaining his perfect streak while Ginger loss another life. As they continued on to play a cut-scene soon started with the boss emerging with a helicopter. Both of them quickly prepared themselves as the battle started.

As they both skilfully managed to fight of the game's boss, Ginger loss her third and final life with the boss only having a fourth of it's life left. Her half of the screen was now blackened with the word continue in the middle of it. A twenty second timer was counting down as it waited for Ginger to insert another token to continue on playing.

"Okay. I'm done. You beat me good on this" Ginger looked a bit frustrated as she placed the controller back down. Nicholas quickly wrapped up the game as explosions echoed through the games speakers. The words level complete flashed out on to the screen as the final cut-scene played out.

"Continue?" Said an automated voice from the game. The options yes and no were blinking on screen. Nicholas went with the latter option and placed down his gun controller. "Game over." The final points now tallied up to be four thousand five hundred points to one thousand five hundred.

"So? How was it?" Ginger now asked.

"Wasn't much of a challenge really." Nicholas answered with a straight face. "Though the controller did feel substantially heavier than a regular hand gun which was the only off-putting part. My reflexes were a bit slower because of it." He pointed out. Ginger couldn't believe what her date just said.

"You call that slow? I barely was able to keep up with you!" Ginger argued. "Just what kind of detective are you?"

"The kind that won't hesitate to pull the trigger even if they are my own brother." Nicholas answered as well. Ginger took in a big gulp as an ominous feel crept up on her. "Now, we still have some time to kill. What else shall we do in the mean time?"

"Y-yeah. Follow me. I might know a couple good games around here." Ginger still looked a bit shakened as she walked on ahead of him. "Oh. And I'll make sure I beat you this time!" She declared in order to gain back some of her confidence. Nicholas just chuckled softly to himself as he followed her. The two of them just continued on to play the various arcade games with Ginger finding little to no success.

(Confessional)

Ginger: Grrr. Nothing is working! I can't beat him in air hockey or pin ball for that matter. For a person who claims to not take part in these sort of things he sure is skilful at them. I wonder what made him so good in learning things so easily?

Nicholas: As a detective it is only natural for me to pick-up things on the spot. Though saying that won't help much since everything here is so trivial. Oh well, at least this date went better than the last one.

(End Confessional)

After a long wait both Nicholas and Ginger finally got out of their respective pods. The latter had a frustrated look as she stomped back to re-join the other contestants. The former though paid no heed to this and just calmly walked back to the front.

"Hey Ginger. You look like you had a lot of fun!" Lucette greeted her with a smile.

"Not now, Lucette. I'm not in the right mood for this." Ginger answered in a low growl. Lucette just quietly backed off.

"Okay, Nicholas. What do you have to say about the date?" Chris asked the detective with a slight grin.

"She got me involved that's for sure." Nicholas answered. "Though it didn't feel like a date and more like some petty competition." He commented. "But I will give it the benefit of the doubt since I had some enjoyment during the entire thing. So I'll give her the point for that one." He explained. The dawn team girls felt a bit of relief after hearing that.

"Yay! We're in the lead!" Laren exclaimed happily.

"And we'll secure this lead once my turn is up. Given his criteria I think I may have the perfect place in mind." Paris said with the utmost confidence. "Especially if your date ends in a success." She gave Laren a pat on the back.

"Great. We're down a point." Alice groaned. "You two better be successful in your dates otherwise we'll be on the chopping block tonight. Understand?" She scowled at them.

"Y-yes. Ma'am!" Lucette gave her a salute. Phoebe didn't say anything and just hid behind Lucette. Alice just let out a deep sigh at them.

"Laren. You're up next!" Chris now called over the next contestant. Laren didn't waste much time and quickly walked on over to the front. "You already know what to do. Go on and choose your location." He stepped aside for Laren to walk on through.

"No need. I'll be using the forest outside the maze for my date." Laren said with a serious enough smile.

"Um, are you sure about that?"

"Yup! I'm sure about it."

"Okay then..." Chris trailed off for he looked a bit skeptical about it.

"Hmm. Considering I got attacked by whatever Chris thought off last time I was in there, the setting pretty much feels natural for me." Nicholas said with small smile. "Pardon the pun."

"Wow. I didn't know you had it in you to make jokes." Chris responded with a slight grin. "Now get on in there and get this date started!" He commanded them now. Both of them soon got in their own pods.

(Confessional)

Laren: Okay. The real reason as to why I wanted the forest outside the maze is so that I can have an asset of my own along the way. Merge is closing and if I want to make it further I need to fend for my own. Hopefully this plan works. Good luck to me I guess.

(End Confessional)

Both Nicholas and Laren are now standing outside the maze. Laren wore her challenge outfit for their date. Nicholas was just giving her an intrigued look as he examined her dress, her flaming cape especially.

"Hmm. Interesting choice in outfit." The former commented as he examined her more. He soon noticed she didn't have a weapon on her. "What is it that you do a here anyway?"

"Oh, um, I just provide some assistance is all." The later sheepishly answered. "Shall we continue this conversation while walking though? I mean this is the reason why we're here." She reasoned out with a faked a smile. Nicholas noticed it but didn't reveal anything yet.

"No need to rush. We still got plenty of time." Nicholas reasoned with a faked smile of his own. "So tell me first though. In what manner?" He questioned her further. Laren felt her heart sank for a second but kept her cool.

"Umm...this necklace of mine enhances the capabilities of someone I give a connection to." Laren explained as she held out her necklace. The jewel shined underneath the sunlight as she did.

"Gave a connection to? What does that mean?" Nicholas gave her a confused look.

"Let me show you." Laren pressed her palm against Nicholas' chest. She took in a deep breath and soon a bright veil of light surrounded them before quickly fading. A sudden convulsion of energy soon forced itself on to the detective causing him to forcefully breath out and took a couple steps back. He was breathing in heavily with some beads of sweat dripping from the sides of his face.

"What...was that?" Nicholas said in-between breaths.

"I just bestowed upon you my power." Laren's voice echoed in his thoughts. Nicholas was surprised to hear this.

"Wait? How did you?" He was a lost for words.

"Oh. Another thing I can do is speak telepathically to someone I have a connection with." Laren explained using her real voice. "I'm sorry for that. I should've told you before hand."

"No need to apologize. I was just caught unaware is all." Nicholas reassured. "Anyways, what power did you just give me?"

"Let me check." Laren looked at her necklace again. The jewel was now crystal blue in colour. "Ice magic it seems."

"Why do you sound so unsure?"

"That's because I have no control over what element I give. I just go by what colour the jewel turns into." Laren explained while looking quite embarrassed.

"Interesting. So how do I use this 'buff' that you've granted?" Nicholas asked now.

"Oh, umm, it usually affects the weapons the user has. Why not try out that gun of yours?" Laren suggested. Nicholas gave her skeptical look but decided to pull out his revolver either way.

"What?" Nicholas was taken by surprise when he saw his gun was emitting a light blue glow. Quickly aiming his gun at a nearby tree he pulled back on the hammer and fired. The bullet left a trail of frost as it exited the barrel and encased the tree in ice as it hits. He then fired another shot only this time to shatter the tree to pieces.

"Hmm. Safe to say you're an invaluable asset to anyone in this cast. Given how much destructive potential you can give." Nicholas reasoned. Laren felt quite happy to hear this. "However...like any asset you can easily be set aside once you are no longer needed. How do you plan on winning this if this is all you have to offer? You'll have to kill at some point. You know that. Right?" The detective interrogated her. Laren's smile quickly faded.

"I know. That is something I have yet to figure out." Laren frowned. "Only thing I can do now is hope for an asset to go my way."

"Is that the reason why you took me here?." Nicholas responded with a straight look. Laren was surprised to hear this.

"Wait. How did you..." She was now the one at a lost for words.

"Figures much." Nicholas shook his head low. "Your outfit was a dead give away. Why else would you wear that? Given that they grant you your powers from what I've noticed from the others. Its as if you want to ensure something." He further deduced.

"Wow...you read me like an opened book." Laren was taken aback by all this. Her shocked expression turned into a sad frown. "Now that you know I planned on using you. I guess this challenge is a fail for me huh?"

"More or less, yes." Nicholas responded with a small nod. Laren just let out a deep and heavy sigh after hearing this.

"Is there any chance for me to redeem myself?" She hoped. Nicholas just shook his head no.

"All my decisions are final. I'm sorry." The detective said a bit solemnly.

"I see. Well, time for us to wrap things up. No need to prolong what can't be changed. So, shall we?" Laren suggested now with a much more genuine smile.

"Alright." Nicholas agreed. He then looked up into the sky and gave a slight nod. Seconds later a beam of light came down on them causing their avatars to flicker. Both of them disappeared moments later.

Back in the real world now both Laren and Nicholas were already out of their pods and standing in-front of everybody. The room was silent for no one bothered to talk.

"Well, that date was quite unfortunate. Who knew Laren had it in her to plan something like that." Chris started in order to break the silence. "We already know the results so no need to wait any longer. You can get return to your team now." The host commanded her. Laren didn't say anything and just walked back and re-joined her team.

"Hey, no need to look down now. We understand what you were trying to do." Ginger comforted the girl. "Right." She looked towards Paris now but she was deep in thought. "Paris!"

"Oh, um, yeah." Paris replied but quickly went back to her thoughts.

"Thanks guys but I think I'll need to think about what I need to do for now." Laren said to them with a heavy look. "If you'll excuse me." She walked out of the room now.

"Good job, Paris. You lost us the opportunity for her to be on our side like you said!" Ginger scolded her now but was ignored. "Paris! Are you even listening? What has gotten over you?!"

"Oh, huh? N-nothing." Paris snapped out of her trance. "I was just thinking about my turn is all." She explained herself.

"Lucette. Its now your turn!" Chris announced now. The aforementioned soon walked up to the front.

"Yippee! Its finally my turn to take on Sherlock here on a date." Lucette said flirtatiously.

"Okay, Lucette. Time for you to choose the location." Chris reminded her as he took a small step to the side. Lucette quickly went over to the control panel and chose her location. Moments later an afternoon Parkside view was shown on the screen with a carriage waiting on the path. A large lake was shown next to it with a bridge connecting to the other side.

"A carriage ride date?" Chris questioned. "How boring."

"But a very romantic one as well!" Lucette sighed dreamily.

"Ugh. Just start the date already and get it over with." The host commanded them now.

"Shall we be off?" Nicholas scoffed. "...Princess." He added with a more confronted tone.

"Ooooh. I like the sound of that." Lucette giggled. "And here I thought I should be the one trying to captivate you." She flirted some more. Nicholas though just gave her a serious look causing her to stop herself. "Yeah. Lets go." She walked on ahead and walked inside a pod. Nicholas followed suit and got inside a pod of his own.

(Confessional)

Lucette: The way Nicholas called me 'Princess' earlier was kinda off-putting. Along with that look he gave. Was he trying to imply he knows something? I sure hope he doesn't know about my past because I'd rather forget about it.

(End Confessional)

The scene now changed to Lucette sitting on a park bench on her own. She wore her challenge clothes for her date except without bringing her weapons. She just sat their waiting until the sound of a horse hooves' clapping along the ground caught her attention. Lucette was astonished to see Nicholas driving the carriage towards her

"Sorry if I made you wait. I figured it would be best for me to drive this thing personally." Nicholas said to her with a silver smile. Lucette was completely speechless. "If I may?" He held his hand out towards her.

"Umm. S-sure." Lucette held on to his hand was helped seated next to Nicholas.

"Hiya!" Nicholas whipped the reins and soon the carriage was now moving. "I hope you don't mind this being your date, Princess."

"N-no. Not at all." Lucette felt the situation to be unsettling now as he mentioned the word princess again.

"So where we headed, Princess?" Nicholas now asked with a slight grin.

"A-anywhere is good." Lucette answered. "Oh, and you can stop calling me princess now. Its getting quite uncomfortable the more you mention it." She insisted. The grin on Nicholas' face grew slightly bigger after hearing this.

"Why not? I thought you'd be well accustomed to this?" Nicholas interrogated her as he continued on driving.

"Accustomed? What do you mean by that?" Lucette was shocked to hear this from me.

"Pardon me for this, my liege, but, you are the missing daughter of the Quetzal royal court, are you not?" Nicholas pressed the matter even further. Lucette fell silent after hearing this one. Her head hanging low and her hair covering her eyes.

"...They don't care about me." She silently uttered. Tears started to stream down from the sides of her face. "They have six other children. They don't need me..." She added.

"What makes you say that, Princess?" The detective pressed her even further. "Surely your mother and father were-."

"And stop calling me that!" The young heiress raised her voice at him to cut him off. "If they did care about me then I wouldn't have been forced to run away all those years ago!" She yelled at him now. This caused Nicholas to stop the carriage. Light snivelling was soon heard from Lucette. "...All those years of mistreatment...I had enough of it...I just wanted to get away from it all..."

"So the rumours were true. You did run away due to abuse instead of being kidnapped your parents insisted. Well, that's all the proof I needed to hear." Nicholas said to her in a calm tone. Lucette just kept on snivelling. "You know, gathering intel on you was really easy. The moment the cameras laid their eyes on you a massive swing in events happened down on Interpol. Heck, your parents even went the extra mile to get you forcefully evicted from the show." A grim smile soon appeared on the detective's face. "You should really thank Chris why you are still here. He managed to defend your spot here on this show. But you'll want to kill him afterwards because of the trade-off."

"What trade-off?"

"That you'll be unwillingly handed back to your parents once you are eliminated." Nicholas answered. Lucette suddenly felt her whole world crumbling after hearing this.

"How do you know about all this stuff?" Lucette quietly asked.

"You could say I pulled a couple strings and used a few favours." Nicholas chuckled softly to himself. He soon jumped off the carriage. "Now that you know what's going on in the outside world. What do you plan on doing now to ensure yourself?" The detective now asked the saddened heiress.

No response came from Lucette for the reality set in-front of her was all she could think off.

"Well, there is that one option Chris laid out for you all during the first day but I highly doubt you'll take it given the risk it involves." Nicholas reminded her. No response came. "I guess we're done here." He soon walked off towards the opposite direction leaving Lucette on her own.

(Confessional)

Lucette: He's right. If I want to make it further then I have to do it. I just don't know if I can do it on my own. I don't want anyone to lose their chance because of me either! Why is this decision so hard to make? I just hope this day doesn't end with our team losing.

Nicholas: Well, I got the evidence and confession I needed to hear. Only thing left to do now is to get someone on the case. Truth be told jeopardizing her team's chances on winning wasn't my intention. It was the only way I see fit for her to talk. The reason her parents gave on why she disappeared was sketchy to begin with, I just needed her testimony to prove it. Oh well, nothing much I can do now.

(End Confessional)

Both Lucette and Nicholas are now outside their pods and have re-joined their separate groups. Awkward silence filled the room yet again as they awaited for Chris to speak.

"Hmm. It seems the cat is finally out of the bag with this one!" Chris exclaimed with a grim looking smile. "Lucette's little secret about being royalty is now out with this one." He laughed.

"How come you never told me about this?" Skell complained. "Isn't it my job as host to know everything about these guys as well?"

"That's because you'll be more of a nuisance if I did." Chris spat back at him. Skell was about to say something back but was interrupted when Chris waved him off. "Nope. I don't want to here it. My point will be proven during the next challenge anyways." He said dismissively.

"Hmph. Whatever." Skell crossed his arms at him.

"Anyways, time to see the results! Even though it was a fail to begin with." Chris silently muttered the last sentence. "Nicholas. Was the date successful or not?" He asked the detective now.

"I know you like to showboat but this getting too repetitive already even for someone like you." Nicholas deadpanned. Chris didn't find this amusing at all. "*sigh* Fine. It was a failed date. Happy?"

"Thank you, Nicholas! And with that, the scores remained unchanged with the lead still being on the dawn team!" The host announced. Nicholas just rolled his eyes. "Now, its time for the second, and hopefully not the least, date for our challenge! Paris. Come on up!" He now called over the next contestant.

Paris walked on over to the front without saying anything. Her eyes were dead set on Nicholas. The detective returned the favour with a spiteful glare of his own. Heated tension was boiling up between the two as Paris stood on Chris' right side.

"Wow. And I thought things were supposed to get heated after the date." Chris laughed at his own joke. The two just ignored him though and just kept their eyes still locked on to each other as if they were waiting for the other to make a move.

"Paris was it? I've heard a lot of interesting stories about you." The detective extended a hand towards her. "They even say you're quite the dancer."

"Thanks. I hope those stories aren't just baseless rumours." The dancer shook hands with him. "Some of them tend to get a bit naughty."

"Don't worry. I have trustworthy sources." Nicholas replied with small smile.

"Hmm. Glad to know you two are getting along quite nicely." Chris injected himself in-between. "Now Paris. Please choose the location of your date." He gestured for her to move towards the control panel.

"Will do." The dancer nodded. "If you'll excuse me." She took a small step back and walked towards the panel. After a short moment she soon chose her location. The facade of a large, pillared, mausoleum styled building was shown on screen with steps leading up to the entrance. A large sign with the words national museum was engraved on it.

"Quite the exquisite location for a first date. Museums are great places to honour a dead man's work." The detective said coldly. "Especially those who've been murdered for their work." He spitefully added.

"A sad fate really but there's no need to wallow on past crimes." Paris countered. "Anyways, shall we be off? I'd like to get that easy win for my team."

"Lets." Nicholas nodded and walked on towards his pod. Paris did the same and entered hers.

"Umm, am I missing something? What's gotten into Nicholas all of a sudden?" Skell looked confused for he didn't know what was going on. Chris just laughed at his co-host.

"Its best you don't know yet." Chris answered him. The co-host just let out a sigh.

(Confessional)

Paris: Nicholas. That detective sure is a lot craftier based on what I've seen. Surely though someone like him has his limits when it comes to acquiring info. If push comes to shove then I could always talk my way out of it like last time. But just in case I might bring something for this date. The question is what though?

(End Confessional)

The scene now shifted to inside the museum. The room showed was filled with different types of paintings and sculptures all made from different points in history.

Inside of one of the gallery rooms was Nicholas is was shown to be standing on his own looking at a painting hanged on the wall in-front of him. The painting he was viewing depicted a battle being fought. Men in blue coats aimed their rifles at the opposition down the hill as they held their flag high. The piece was titled "Civil War" for it was engraved on gold plate attached to the bottom part of the frame. Moments later the sound of heels tapping towards him started to echo throughout the room but he didn't let it bother him as he continued on to examine the painting

"I see you like that painting." A soft female voice said from behind him. The camera turning around showed Paris wearing a simple white dress with red streaks on the hem of the skirt. "Fighting in a war looks quite dreadful."

"At least these men died with honour. Some men these days meet death without even knowing it. Noble men at that. And that is where I draw the line. I capture those who are convicted of such acts and permanently remove them from the streets." Nicholas monologued. "No compassion. No sympathy. Just the law."

"Quite the riveting tale but surely as detective of your calibre can understand that these men had it coming for them. I mean why else were these men killed if they didn't deserve it? Some men just need to learn how far they can push someone." Paris said the last sentence with a bit of spite. She then started to chuckle softly. "I merely jest. I'm not that psychotic." She grinned.

"Yes. Yes. I'm sure you always tell that to yourself at night." The former turned his head slightly around to face the latter. "I know you did it."

Paris scoffed, "Did what?"

"Don't play games with me. You know what I'm talking about." Nicholas fully faced her now. He gave the dancer a piercing glare as well.

"That case already went cold and the lead investigators already cleared out my name. So their is no longer the need to go blindly accusing me now." Paris said with a devious looking grin. "Now, shall we be off to enjoy some art?"

"No can do Paris for you see I already solved this case." The detective responded with a serious look. "Truth be told it wasn't that hard to crack." He boasted now.

"Really now? Fine. So tell me, detective, how did your investigations lead its way to me?" The dancer challenged him now. A notable grin soon formed on Nicholas' face.

"Easy. You were diagnosed for having rare psychological disorder known as pathological jealousy or most widely known as Othello syndrome. A rare disorder where someone would act irrationally in the face of jealousy or inadequacy. Next is that your fiancé had an affair with another woman in which triggered your disorder thus giving you a motive. And lastly, only you had access to your house since everyone else was gone aside from your fiancé." Nicholas finished his deductions. "Need I say more?"

"Really? I see many flaws in that argument of yours mainly because I have two solid alibies in which counters you completely." Paris scowled. "First off, my psychiatrist already gave me the thumbs up with papers to prove it. And secondly, I was at my recital during the murder. How do you think I could have done both then if I were indeed the killer?" She argued back. Nicholas forced out a chuckle.

"Simple. The first case being that you showed good conduct since you had no stimuli thus discharging you early with positive results. As for the second case, it was quite easy to tell if you know what you are looking at. You had hired someone to be your stand in for the recital. Simple as that." Nicholas rebutted.

"Really now? How can you even assume as much? Surely such accusations needs a lot of information and evidence to back it all up." Paris laughed at him now. Nicholas just scoffed at her.

"The only evidence I need is the alibies you so cockily presented. The first one is already a written document while the second one, well, you'll just have to check the reviews on that recital of yours. A lot of them say you suddenly got sloppier in your dance." The detective explained to her. "Oh, and another thing. You hired a secretary who's credentials needing to match you appearance wise days before the murder. If that doesn't raise any suspicions then I don't know what would."

The detective soon slowly walked up to her and stood by her side. He gave the dancer now an ominous looking stare as he spoke up.

"I suggest you owe up to your crimes. Otherwise..." He took a dramatic pause. "I'll just have to drag you out of here with me before the day ends." He chuckled softly. "And I won't guarantee that you'll be walking." Nicholas left Paris alone now.

Paris just standing there on her own was just glaring at the painting in-front of her. Her hands clutched and teeth gritted. As she listened to Nicholas' foot steps receeding behind her, something inside her finaly snapped for the face she gave suddenly turned from anger to something plain and psychotic. She soon started to meniacly laughed to herself with the volume slowly rising.

Nicholas, who was already by the doorway, stopped for a moment before continuing to walk on out. The sound of the dancer's demented laughter started echoing through the halls as the camera watched the detective slowly walk down the hall.

(Confessional)

Paris: Fool of a detective think he can take me in? Oh how loathsome can he be. He can't take me yet for I'm sure that host won't allow given his ways. Though I might get a similar outcome like that pathetic little princess but unlike her I actually have the skills necessary to get me far.

(End confessional)

Both Paris and Nicholas are back in the real world and were glaring back at each other. The room was silent for everyone was watching both of them with horrified looks directed at the former. Chris, who was standing between them, had a twisted grin on his face while Skell was terrified from what he had witnessed.

"I know you took in Duncan during the first season even though he was an ex-convict but at least he was just delinquent. This is a murderer for crying out loud!" Skell rambled to his partner. Chris though acted as though he didn't hear him. "Chris? Are you even listening?!"

"Well, that was a great reveal. Not only are we harbouring a princess, we also have a murderer in the same room! I wonder how much drama can boil from this?" The host gave everyone his trademark smile. "Any thoughts on this, Skell?"

"My god. You've completely lost it." Skell exhaled sharply. Chris was just chuckling to himself now.

"Have I?" Chris just started chuckling some more. He then looked towards Nicholas. "Anyways, I'll hand Paris in once she's eliminated. How does that sound to you?" He asked the detective.

"It'll do. Saves me on bullets." Nicholas deadpanned.

"You're that confident that I won't end up winning this?" Paris scowled at the detective.

"Given that revelation, I doubt you'll stay for long." Nicholas taunted her. Paris let out a low growl.

"Hmm. Glad to see someone will be waiting for you once this is all over!" Chris smiled. "Anyways, time for you to go back to your team. If they'll still accept you that is." He sneered. The dancer just walked on away in a huff.

"H-hey, Paris." Ginger greeted her. "Sad to see your date didn't go so well hehe..." Her voice was meek and trembled. She took in a heavy gulp.

"You still trust me, right?" Paris asked her in a soft voice. Ginger felt hard pressed for an answer.

"Of course I do!" Ginger assured her. "We're still in this together, right?"

"Glad to know." Paris gave her a small smile. "I'll be counting on you." She patted Ginger on the shoulder and exited the building. "Oh yeah, keep quiet about it with the others, alright?" She said before leaving.

"Hmm. How dramatic. Anyways, time for the next round!" Chris exclaimed. "Phoebe. Its now your turn!"

"Really? I give up." Skell breathed out deeply. "Let's get this show on the road..."

The doll faced girl soon walked up to the front to join the three of them.

"Phoebe. Its quite the honour to be working with you again." Nicholas greeted her with soft and gentle voice. "Its been a while."

"Th-thank you." She meekly responded. "E-excuse me for a moment."

Nicholas stepped to the side to let Phoebe walk on through and towards the control panel. She slowly scanned through all the locations with lots of hesitations. After a short while she soon made her choice. A cute and bright looking café was now shown on the monitor with a single windowed door.

"I-I hope you don't mind some tea." Phoebe squeaked.

"On the contrary, it'll be my pleasure." Nicholas said with a small smile. "Shall I walk you to your pod?"

Phoebe shook her head, "N-no need. I can do it on my own." She soon went her own pod. Nicholas just nodded did the same. Both of them are now safely inside their pods.

"Okay, tell me this then. What's the relationship between these two?" Skell asked his partner.

"Nothing special. They were both part of a similar season I hosted a year ago." Chris plainly answered. "The cast was a lot bigger as well so you'll be surprised on how far Phoebe had gotten." He added.

"So she's a veteran huh? Good to know."

"Kazuo and Alysson as well but I didn't care much for their season. A new guy was the one who hosted it with Blaineley being the co-host." Chris explained. "Valnoir I think was the guy's name was?" He tried to recall. "If you think I'm sadistic, you should have seen what he did with his season." He chuckled softly.

"Why does it feel like you're trying to one up him?" Skell asked. Chris didn't say anything but gave him a coy smile. The co-host just side.

(Confessional)

Phoebe: O-okay. Time for me to do well in this challenge! I haven't been on a date before ever since...n-never mind. I-I just hope things go well this time...The-the challenge I mean!

(End Confessional)

Nicholas was now shown by the café's front door step. He peaked inside the window to see Phoebe the only one their waiting for him on a clothed table. A simple, small flower vase served as the table's center piece. The latter opted to where her normal clothing for her date as well. With everything well in place, Nicholas gently opened up the door causing a bell to ring.

"Welcome, master." A girl wearing a maid's uniform greeted the detective with a slight bow. "May I take that coat for you?"

"Yes, sure." Nicholas nodded in agreement as he removed his trench coat to reveal the white undershirt underneath. He gave the trench coat to the maid in which she hung it on a near by coat rack.

"This way, master." The girl smiled at him as she guided Nicholas with her right arm towards Phoebe.

"Thank you." Nicholas nodded before walking towards the doll faced girl. "Greetings." He pulled his seat and sat across Phoebe now.

"G-good day to you as well." Phoebe returned the gesture. Nicholas just gave her a soft smile and leaned back in to his seat.

"Its been a while, hasn't it?" The detective asked her now. "A year or more perhaps?"

"Y-yeah. I guess." Phoebe meekly answered. "D-do you still visit there though?"

"Not regularly but I still do. Chris after all gave us unlimited access." Nicholas answered. The sound of foot steps approaching them soon caught their attention.

"Good afternoon, masters." A different maid approached them and bowed. "What will be your orders? May we start of with the drinks?" She asked them as she pulled out a notepad and pen.

"Y-yes. Umm..." Phoebe gave Nicholas a quick glance.

"Go ahead. I'm fine with anything." Nicholas assured her.

"Some jasmine tea please." Phoebe now ordered. The main wrote it down.

"Okay. How about snacks?" The maid asked them now.

"S-some fruit biscuits if you have any." Phoebe added to her order. The maid just wrote it down as well.

"How about you, sir?" She asked Nicholas as well.

"Wheat crackers and caviar if its not too much to ask." Nicholas ordered.

"Most certainly." The maid smiled and wrote down his order. "I'll be back in a few minutes with your orders." She gave them a final bow and walked off.

With both of them alone once more, they resumed their conversation.

"You know, I find it odd about how much you've changed and yet nothing has changed around you." Nicholas said to her.

Phoebe just gave the detective a confused look. "What do you mean?"

"Well, from what I've noticed, you've been doing a great deal in sharing the weight of your team during challenges. If you can even call that sharing. And yet, people still hold your hand as if you were still that defenceless little girl from a year back." Nicholas explained. "Why is that?"

"I-I don't think you can even c-call it that. S-Savior does all the work. I barely even g-give him commands." Phoebe meekly argued. "Not even Violin..."

"Hmm. I see..." Nicholas trailed off. "I'm sure you'll get used to it." He assured her. "Well, that's all I wanted to say. Now, what else should we talk about? We still got a lot of time." The detective gave her a gentle smile.

"I-I don't know. I-I'm still not much for conversations." The doll faced girl meekly admitted.

Before Nicholas could say anything, the maid who took their orders soon returned to them with their tea and snacks. She held them up on a circular tray with one hand and was still able to walk gracefully towards them.

"Here you are. Sir. Madame. Fruit biscuits and wheat crackers with caviar." She served the two their snacks. Phoebe's was a couple pieces of two biscuits sandwiched together with cream and a strawberry jam centre. Nicholas was just simply a few wheat crackers smeared with caviar on each one.

"And your drinks." The maid now served them two tea cups with saucers underneath. She poured tea in each one and placed down the pot in-between them. "Enjoy." She smiled and bow before taking her leave.

"Jasmine tea huh?" Nicholas raised his saucer and drank his cup. He let out a satisfied breath before placing it down. "I would have assumed you'd be the type to order sweetened tea."

"I-I do. Its just that I order for this when I want to c-calm myself." Phoebe explained.

"Well, I'm glad you did. Sweetened tea is not my cup of tea." The detective chuckled softly before taking in another sip of his tea. "Since you're not the type to open up a conversation. Let me interrogate you for a bit. Remember though, anything you say or do will be used against you in the court of law. So you better be careful what you say to me, alright?" Nicholas said with a widened grin.

Phoebe just took in a nervous sip of her tea and didn't say anything.

"Let me start you off easy. Tell me about your..."

The two of them continued on conversing with one another between various topics. Both of them seemed to have had a great time, probably. Between Phoebe's nervous disposition and Nicholas' interrogative approaches, it was hard to keep up on how the flow of the date went. After a while their snacks had already been finished with both of them at their final cup of tea.

"I see. Interesting to know." Nicholas drank his final cup. He reached for the pot and poured but nothing came out. "Hmm. Seems like we're all out." He placed the pot back down.

"S-So what now?" Phoebe asked.

"Well, I guess that only means we're done." The former answered. He soon stood up from his seat. "It was wonderful doing some catching up with you. I'll see you on the outside." He now left Phoebe alone and walked towards the door. He picked up his coat and left causing the bell to ring out once more.

(Confessional)

Nicholas: Finally done with this challenge. I don't usually partake into these sorts of pleasantries so I wasn't too keen on doing this to begin with. For those who are asking, yes. I agree for the unsolved cases. Phoebe being here had nothing to do with it as well.

(End Confessional)

Both Nicholas and Phoebe are now outside their pods and was standing in-front of everyone. All of the contestants, except Leonard, were called back inside the building to witness the results. Alysson was there as well to join the hosts.

"Aww you girls are lucky to have went with a date with Nicholas!" Alysson pouted. "If he'd let I'd taken him out as well~" the trap purred with delight. All the girls thought otherwise.

"I can't say much for the guys who went with you." Nicholas said back to him.

"You're lucky you are way to irresistible for me to snap back at." Alysson bit his thumb nail. The detective just sighed.

Chris clapped his hands once to get their attention. "Okay! Enough with the flirting! Nicholas. Anything to comment about in your date?"

"It was quite pleasant actually. A decent change in pace unlike the other dates that came before. Everything was quite nice and I might even say I had a good enough time." Nicholas replied. Phoebe looked hopeful that she did a good job.

"Okay. So tell us now, was a Phoebe here a success for you?" Chris asked.

"Yeah. She did good. I'll give her the point for that one." Nicholas answered. "And if I'm not mistaken that makes the scores tied."

"That is indeed correct." The host confirmed. "You two seem to like getting ties huh?" He said jokingly. "Oh well, a tie breaker is in order to resolve this. And since the theme of today's challenge is dating. The tie breaker for this would be the one thing all dates end with. The final kiss good-bye." He grinned maliciously.

"A what?!" The detective was surprised to hear this.

"Ooooh. I like that~" The trap cooed.

Everyone in the room was taken by surprised and were taken aback from what the tie-breaker challenge was.

"Also, to make things interesting, you all can get to choose who to kiss from these two. So guys, don't be afraid to open up now." Chris laughed at them.

"Yeah. No. I'm not having that." Nicholas said dismissively.

"Meh. Not my style either." Alysson shrugged.

"Anyways, first one to do it wins the challenge for their team. So better decide on who to go before the other team beats you to it." Chris said to them. The teams soon started arguing with their own teammates.

"No thanks. I've already spent my time with Alysson so its no fun if I do it." Kazuo backed out. "And besides, I doubt Nicholas would agree to me." He joked.

"Yeah...I'm not putting my lips on any of them." Alice crossed her arms. "You guys will have to do it."

"After today's challenge I don't think I want to get near any of them." Lucette felt a bit down.

"I already embarrassed myself in-front of a camera so no thanks." Blake backed out.

"I-I'm not sure i-if I can bring m-myself to do it..." Phoebe stammered. "O-on the ch-cheek sure b-but not what Chris is s-suggesting." She blushed heavily.

"Well what now? I'm not doing it since I'm not even part of this!" Janet said to all of them.

The dusk team continued on to argue. Over by the dawn team's side, a similar thing is happening to them as well.

"Me? Kiss him? No way!" Paris said dismissively. "I'd rather kill him instead!" She growled. Her team was surprised to hear this.

"Woah. What happened between you and Nicholas?" Dylan looked confused. "Did something go wrong?" He questioned. Paris just gave him a sharp glare.

"Lets just say her date went bad, alright?" Ginger quickly intervened. "Lets just talk about the matter at hand." She returned the subject.

"How about Nathan? He already kissed Alysson before. Why not make him do it again?" Laren suggested.

"No way I'm doing that again!" Nathan protested.

Both teams just continued on to argue with each other.

"Hmm. No one seems to want to do it. Are you sure this is a good idea for a tie breaker?" Skell questioned Chris.

"Unless you can think of a better idea to suit the theme that is still underneath our rating then I'll be more than happy to hear." Chris said back to his partner. "And besides, they are just over thinking it. A simple kiss on the cheek and they won."

"Why didn't clarify that to them any sooner? We could have been done here by now!" Skell confronted him. Chris just shrugged with a wide grin as a response.

"Hey Nicholas. Who do you think is the lucky girl to kiss you?" Alysson flirted. "Will you agree if I had a go?" He giggled.

"No." Nicholas plainly answered.

"Aww. Aren't I cute enough for you?" The trap starred at him with puppy eyes.

"No. Now go away or else." The detective said dismissively.

"Fine, Mr. Kill joy." Alysson took a few steps back.

The two teams just continued on to argue about who should be the one taking on the tie breaker challenge. Continues bickering and name calling filled the room for a long while. After a long time waiting, someone finally snapped and stepped up.

"Ugh. Alright! I'll do it!" Ginger stepped up for her team. She incoherently grumbled something as she stomped towards the front.

"Ooooh~ It seems this fiery red head is your prize, Nicholas." Alysson purred as he watched Ginger approach.

"Shut up. I'm not here for the detective." Ginger faced Alysson with a serious look.

"W-what?" Alysson took a step back but was quickly pulled in by Ginger. She gave him a quick peck before stomping back off towards her team. Alysson was left stunned in the front.

"There. I did it! We won." Ginger growled at Chris. "God, I hate you guys..." She mumbled.

"Yeah. You won the tie breaker. Good job, Ginger!" Chris gave her a thumbs up. "Though a simple kiss on the cheek would have worked out as well but oh well." The host snickered. Ginger though just kept a hard glare on him. "Anyways, Diamond Dusk Wolves, I'll be seeing you all later tonight. You may all go now." He instructed them to leave.

All of the contestants soon started flocking towards the exit while some talked on the way out.

"Blake, I need you for a second." Lucette approached the prankster before they could move.

"What is it?" Blake asked with his head tilted.

"...I need to talk to you privately about something. Come find me later, alright?" Lucette pleaded.

"Um, sure." The latter agreed. The former just nodded and took off.

"Hey, Kazuo." Alice caught up to Kazuo and stopped him before he could exit. "We need to talk. Meet me here later tonight, alright?"

"Sure, Alice. Whatever you say." Kazuo agreed. He soon exited through the door.

"Oh and one more thing!" Alice stopped him once more. "Votre français a besoin de travail." She soon walked passed him now. Kazuo just stood their wondering now.

* * *

(Cabin 9: Tristan and Estwynn's. Two hours before elimination)

Inside the now vacated cabin was Blake and Lucette. The place still had the previous contestants' belongings as well as being left untouched.

"Hey, thanks for coming, Blake." Lucette said with a sad smile.

"No problem. Is there anything wrong though? What's with that sad look?" Blake asked with a worried sounding tone.

"N-nothing. I just need your help with..." Lucette paused and looked hesitant about what she's going to say next.

"Help with what?" The prankster looked confused. Lucette still didn't say anything. "Lucette?"

"...Help with the vote." She finally said. "I don't know who to choose and I need your opinion."

"Is that it? Why go all this way to make it private though?" Blake looked skeptical now.

"B-because umm to avoid us getting targeted." Lucette quickly said on the spot. "If they caught us being together they might assume we're in an alliance and possibly target us." She further explained.

"I see. Good point I guess." Blake shrugged. "Anyways, if you want my opinion, vote of Janet. She caused us to lose my point anyways. We could have avoided this if she didn't say anything." He pitched to her.

"Janet? I see. I'll agree to that." Lucette agreed. "Well, that is all. You should go now before the others find us."

"Okay. Well. See you later I guess." Blake walked off. The door was soon heard closing leaving Lucette alone. She soon walked out of the cabin as well.

(Confessional)

Lucette: *sigh* I can't bring Blake into this. I don't want him to lose his chance because of me. Well, looks like I'm doing this alone.

(End Confessional)

* * *

(Virtual world: Maze Outskirts. One hour before elimination)

Alice and Kazuo were shown sitting underneath a large tree. The former was sitting down on a low hanging branch looking longingly at the night sky with both legs swinging. The latter was just sitting at the bottom of the tree by it's roots and just reading his spell book.

"So how long do you plan on starring up at the sky? You're starting to look crazier then what you claim me to be." Kazuo started chuckling.

"Shut up. You don't understand." Alice said back coldly. "Nor care anyways."

"Of course I do! That's why I'm doing this." Kazuo flicks his fingers.

Alice soon started to hear something breaking beside her. Looking towards the tree she spotted her branch was on fire. Both her and the branch fell seconds later.

"Waah!" Alice fell from the branch and landed on top of Kazuo but on the place where it matters the most. The branch though landed safely next to them.

"Eep...I expected that to happen..." Kazuo groaned in pain.

"Fuck you...Kazuo..." Alice moaned.

"Anyways, now that I got your attention, who do we plan on voting for?" Kazuo now asked. He then suddenly stroked Alice's hair.

Alice quickly responded by quickly placing her dagger on Kazuo's throat. "Try that again. I dare you." She looked a bit flustered.

Kazuo started to laugh. "What if I decided to tell you I like you instead? Will you react the same or act all tsundere?"

Alice keeping a steady glare at him just gripped on to her dagger tightly. After a few daunting seconds she pulled her arm back and sheathed her blade.

"Whatever. Mudak." Alice pushed herself off of Kazuo. "We vote for the weakest link in our team. Easy as that."

"Weakest link? Who perhaps may that be?" Kazuo asked with small smile as he stood up as well.

"Are you daft? Lucette obviously! She hasn't shown not even an inch of her use, a0acts poorly in challenges and looks like she'd rather flirt with Blake!" Alice pitched to him. "And besides, she's the most expendable one here."

"Hmm. Interesting to note but, where did you get all this info from?" Kazuo questioned her.

Alice sighed, "The moon." She pointed her finger up in the sky.

"The moon huh?" Kazuo looked up. "Yeah. You're crazy. But I got no one else to vote for so deal." He soon grabbed his book from the ground patted away the dirt. "Now, if you don't mind me, I'll be doing some experiments." He walked off deeper into the forest.

Alice now alone just let out a deep breath and disappeared into the darkness.

(Confessional)

Alice: The hard part in being an alliance with that idiot is keeping him straight and dealing with his...weirdness. Being with him is no walk in the park so I wonder how that Alysson managed to deal with him for an entire season.

Kazuo: Hmm. Learning my spell book is good after all. I didn't know I can do a lot with the three spells I currently know. I've read a few more here but the writings won't glow whenever I try to use them. Maybe getting to merge unlocks them somehow.

(End Confessional)

* * *

(Chef's food tent. Thirty minutes before elimination)

Inside the food tent, Clint was shown to be holding a tray full of food. A plate with a slice of pork chop and rice with a glass full of water. As he looked around for a place to sit, he soon took notice of Phoebe sitting on her own at the back corner of the tent. Seeing no better option, he decided to sit next to her.

As Clint makes his way towards Phoebe, he soon saw Nicholas enter the tent. The detective suddenly went towards Phoebe and sat down across from her after a short talk. Both of them soon started having a conversation. Seeing this now, Clint felt a bit dissuaded but still pushed through with it.

Continuing to make his way towards them now, Clint accidentally hit one of the chairs causing it to clatter. The noise caught both Nicholas and Phoebe's attentions.

"Oh, h-hey Clint." Phoebe shyly greeted him. "Y-you looking for a p-place to sit? Y-you can sit w-with us if you want..." She suggested.

Seeing as though it was his intention to begin with, Clint nodded in response. He soon went behind Phoebe and sat on the chair beside her. He placed down his food immediately after.

"Nicholas. Th-this is Clint. He's the one I-I've been talking about." Phoebe introduced. Nicholas just gave Clint a quick look and nodded.

"Yes. I remember him from watching Alysson's date." The detective thought back. He then examined the boy further. "Its nice to personally meet you." He extended a hand forward. Clint just promptly shook it. "Anyways, back to the matter at hand. Are you sure you need my input for who to vote? For I'm most certain you wouldn't like what I have to say." Nicholas gave Phoebe a serious look. Clint was surprised to hear this. "Why didn't you just approach your team for this? Like Clint here."

"W-well, i-its just that I c-can't approach Kazuo, Alice, and Janet easily and Lucette and Blake are always busy together s-so I got no other options." Phoebe meekly explained herself. She then gave Clint a low glance but didn't say anything.

"Hmm. I see. Well, if I were to choose from your perspective I'd say I have two options to go by. The first being Janet since she did cause Blake to outburst resulting in the deduction of his point. And since Blake and Lucette are together like you said, she has more than likely two votes on her." Nicholas explained to her the first option. "And the second being Kazuo. Reason being is that he took of with Alysson along with his point. And if those three are together, I highly doubt he has a vote under him." He now explained the second.

"K-Kazuo or Janet? Hmm, I-I still don't know who to choose." Phoebe looked down for she still wasn't sure. "W-what do you think, Clint?"

Clint just gave her a shrug for he couldn't make up his mind as well.

"Or..." Nicholas suddenly added. This caught both of their attentions. "Or you can vote on how I see the game so far. Since I'm not part of this I know who is objectively the best one to vote off so far." He explained now.

"R-really? Who is it then?" Phoebe asked.

"Lucette. She's easily been a liability from her old team and can be said the same for this new one." Nicholas answered. "She's basically like you in our season. The only difference being is that she doesn't have a Cassie to protect her. And since her only close friend in Ginger is on the other team, its best you take her out now before they both reached merge. Otherwise she'll be as difficult to take out as you were." He thoroughly explained. "And we both know how long Cassie took to be taken out before we could get to you."

This left Phoebe and Clint with a lot of difficulty to decide now. The former though was feeling bothered by this the most. The PA system suddenly acting up disrupted them from their thoughts.

"Attention, everyone. The ceremony is about to commence. Dawn team, be sure to send in your votes by then. Special guests. Please see me in my office now." Chris' voice announced.

"Well, I guess that's our cue." Nicholas stood up from his seat. "I'll leave the choices for you to decide." He now left them.

(Confessional)

Phoebe: Kazuo, Janet, or Lucette. I-I hope Clint made the best choice in choosing.

(End Confessional)

* * *

(Elimination grounds: Diamond Dusk Wolves)

All the remaining contestants were gathered around the camp fire now. Nicholas and Alysson were standing in for both Chris and Skell. Both hosts were just watching them from the side of the contestants.

"Hey, Lucette. Are you okay?" Ginger whispered for she noticed Lucette fidgeting nervously on her seat.

"Huh? Y-yeah." The heiress stammered. Ginger was still left concerned for her.

"Diamond Dusk Wolves. Upon Chris' request, I'll be the one reading out the ones who are safe for tonight." Nicholas announced as he held out a piece of paper.

"And I'll be his lovely assistant for tonight." Alysson blew them all a kiss as he held out a plate of cookies on one hand. The cookies were all shaped like wolf heads. Alice just shivered on her seat at the sight.

"Well, now that you all know the process, its time we-"

"Wait!" Lucette interrupted cutting Nicholas off. "I need to say something..."

"Okay. Make it quick then for we don't have all night." The detective said back to her.

Lucette nodded and took in a deep breath. She soon faced Chris who was standing by her left.

"Chris. I want to take on the special challenge." She said to him now. A lot of the contestants gasped after hearing this.

"Are you fairly certain? You do know the consequences." The host gave her a grim smile. Lucette just nodded. "I see. Are you bringing someone with you?" Lucette shook her head no. "I see. Well, if that's the case then..." Chris walked towards the cookies and crushed it in his hands. "Lucette is deemed safe for now." He told Nicholas. The detective just nodded. "Skell. Bring her to my office."

"Sure thing. Lucette. Follow me." Skell motioned for her to go. Lucette nodded and was about to walk off when Ginger suddenly grabbed her arm.

"Ginger?" Lucette was surprised by this.

"I'm not letting you do this alone!" Ginger gave her a serious look. "Chris. I'm doing this with her."

"Ginger. What are you doing? You can't help her!" Paris scolded her as she stood up from her seat.

"I'm sorry, Paris. But you'll have to trust me on this one." Ginger said to her back. Both girls just stared at each other for a while before Paris gave in and sat back down.

The dancer scoffed, "Fine. You better have a good reason."

"Thanks." Ginger looked towards Chris now. "So Chris, what do you have to say?"

"Its fine with me but on one condition." Chris gave her a devious grin. "I get to choose the challenge."

"...Deal." Ginger agreed.

"I see. Skell. Take them both now to my office." Chris commanded his partner.

"Alright. You two. Follow me." Skell walked on ahead of them. Both them soon followed.

"You don't have to do this, Ginger." Lucette said with a sad tone.

"Shut up. Just be glad I'm helping you." Ginger responded. All three of them soon disappeared into the forest.

"Well, that was dramatic." Chris commented. "Nicholas. You may resume."

"Well *clears throat* Like Chris said, Lucette will be safe for tonight." Nicholas declared to them. "Now, time to read who are actually safe." He held out the paper. "Starting with Blake."

Alysson gently handed the prankster his cookie and winked.

"Uhh, thanks?"

"Next is Phoebe."

Alysson gave Phoebe her cookie and gave her a pat on the head.

"Next one is Clint."

"You want something sweet to go along with that cookie, senpai?" Alysson flirted while handing Clint his cookie. Clint just brushed him off.

"Next up is Alice."

Alysson dropped the cookie on Alice's hands.

"That's for earlier. Hmph." The trap pouted. Alice couldn't care any less.

"Kazuo. Janet. Both of you received votes for tonight but the one who is safe is...

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

...Kazuo. Congratulations." Nicholas said to him now.

"What?! How is that possible? I didn't even do anything!" Janet complained.

"Yeah you did! You caused me to lose my point!" Blake argued back.

"How is that my fault? You're the one who lashed out!" Janet spat back at him. "Kazuo had it worst! He took of with Alysson and his score!" She argued while pointing at him.

Alysson walked towards Kazuo with a cookie in hand and leaned forward. "Want me to feed it to you, Maître?"

"Hmph. Just try me." Kazuo warned.

"I'd love to." Alysson giggled as he placed the cookie in his hand. The trap soon sucked his fingers clean before walking off.

"Janet. You've been voted out by your team. Any last words?" Nicholas gave her a cold stare.

"This is totally unfair! It isn't even my fault!" Janet glared at Blake once more. "I'll get you for this someday." She growled at him.

"Okay. That's enough. Chris. Take her away." The detective called over the host.

"Not my job really but meh. Come on Janet. I don't got all night." Chris pushed Janet towards the challenge building.

"Yeah, yeah. Just stop pushing." Janet went with Chris in a huff.

"Alright, everyone. You may all go back to your cabins." Nicholas told them

"You boys better be good now. Otherwise all the naughty ones will get a visit from me." Alysson winked at them.

All the remaining contestants left the elimination site and went on their separate ways. The camera soon zoomed in on the two stand-ins once everyone was gone.

"Well, that was an interesting day for us. Won't you agree, Nicholas?" Alysson smiled. "Especially since Lucette got saved from being voted off!"

"I still can't believe Chris had the audacity to bring us in for this." Nicholas crossed his arms.

"Hey, at least you got to meet cute girls. Including me!" The trap giggled.

"Stop trying to sell yourself. The people watching this already knows you to begin with." The detective sternly said back.

"That hasn't stopped me from getting offers. Hehe." Alysson mumbled with a cheeky grin. He then gave the camera another wink. "Anyways, lets get this outro over with. You start."

"*sigh* Fine." Nicholas drew in a deep breath to compose himself. "After today's events how will our contestants fair with some knowing now a little bit about their past?" He said to the camera.

"Will this be enough to instil doubt into their hearts and minds? Or will they just let it slide and move on like normal?" Alysson chimed in now.

"Will Ginger and Lucette be successful in their challenge?" Nicholas gave the audience a curious thought.

"Will Alice and Kazuo's partnership be affected knowing his past with me?" Alysson flipped his long silver hair with his hand.

"And what will Paris hope to achieve?" Nicholas glared at the camera. "Find out next time on Total..." The detective started.

"Drama..." The trap added in.

"Dungeon Hunters!" Both of them said in unison.

"Bye now!" Alysson cutely waved at the camera.

"Ugh." Nicholas groaned and shook his head.

* * *

(Votes)

Blake: I'm voting for Janet. She caused me to lose a point so its simple as that.

Lucette: I guess I'm voting for Janet. I wanted to talk to Blake about doing the challenge with me but I couldn't so this'll have to do.

Alice: I vote for Lucette. I trust the moon's guidance for this one. I just hope it works out well with Kazuo's

Kazuo: Trusting in the moon huh? Crazy thing I ever heard about but sounds interesting so I'll go along with it! I vote for Lucette

Janet: Hmph. After today's challenge dropping Kazuo won't be half bad. We could have avoided this if he didn't think about that butterfly effect of his and went to that trap. My vote goes to Kazuo.

Phoebe: Umm. After me and C-Clint talked about it, we d-decided on Lucette so my vote goes to her.

Clint: I vote for Lucette. I trust that detective's word on this seeing as though he knows the bigger picture than the rest of us.

* * *

Places:

18th: Estwynn Paratus. The Mech and Hero Enthusiast. Role: Fighter

17th: Derek Wright. The Dangerous Outcast. Role: Fighter

16th: Kali Dulal. The Folklore/Mythology Enthusiast. Role: Duelist

15th: Tristan Kell. The Mechanic. Role: Backrow

14th: Gelsey. The Smol Girl. Role: Support

13th: Janet Jordan. The Loner. Role: Tank

* * *

 **Author's Note: Well, this chapter was difficult to write. I had to be very careful in choosing my words for the first half of it. To give y'all a perspective on how much writing this took, it took up about 50 memo notes worth. Okay, enough ranting, time to...rant about why Janet lost...hmm. Anyways...**

 **Janet. Originally she wasn't meant to be in this spot heck her whole team wasn't supposed to lose to begin with. The reason being for the sudden shift in ending was due to the ending with Ginger and Lucette. I needed to find a way to tie that in without sounding too forced but more on that later. The reason why I chose Janet to be the new place holder of this spot is because she was a bit underwhelming now compared to the others. Challenge wise she'll be doing okay but social wise? Yeah, that's where she dips. Overall, she made for a decent character to write for but wasn't really meant for merge even on the original plan.**

 **Now, for Ginger and Lucette. Like from what y'all read they'll be taking on the bonus challenges I set during the first challenge. I first received Lucette's creator's PM about it a few months back saying I could do it at any point I want with whoever I want. To be honest I didn't since that would be hard to write in on its own not until Ginger's creator's PM saying she'll do it as well. So with this all in mind now, I found a great way for them to do the challenge together. By spurring up some drama with Lucette's team losing. So yeah, expect this bonus challenge to be up first before the next actual chapter.**

 **Okay, now that this is done, I'd like to thank Aleister Bloodrive VII for this challenge idea. I took this idea on because it sounded like a great one mostly because I can reveal some things about each contestant. Though some didn't get the same treatment but that's mostly because I got nothing to exploit from them. This wasn't the original idea given because I gave it a few twists of my own. Also one more thing I wanted to mention is that the last challenge was an idea given by Scorpialin. I forgot to mention it last chapter so sorry about that. I mentioned about it in the reviews section but felt like I needed to mention it here as well.**

 **Anyways, onto the question: Summoning. An art that only two contestants have fully grasped but yet still lacking. Normally an art in which a lot of training and sacrifices have to be made in order to get a hold off. How far is your OC willing to go in order to achieve the perfect creation?**

 **Well, that is all. 'Till next time!**


	12. Mirror Mirror along the Walls

"Welcome, everyone to the special episode of Total Drama: Dungeon Hunters!" Chris exclaimed with his trademark smile. "If you all remembered last episode, Lucette of the Diamond Dusk Wolves and Ginger of the Golden Dawn Elves decided to shaken up last night's elimination ceremony by playing the one card everyone has access to...The bonus challenge!" A replay of Lucette and Ginger declaring to take the challenge was shown.

"However, Lucette was supposed to be last night's eliminated so because of this a new unlucky soul had to take her place." A grim smile was soon formed on the host's face. "Janet was the one unfortunate enough to receive the second most votes thus causing her untimely elimination." A replay of Janet leaving with Chris was shown. The camera started to slowly zoom in on Chris.

"Will the two be successful in their challenge? Will they both fail and be the cause of their permanent removal? Or will only one of them succeed while the other loses? Find out now on Total...Drama...Dungeon Hunters!" He spread both hands out dramatically. "But first, a little drama from last night."

~Theme song~

The scene shifted to inside Chris' office. Both Lucette and Ginger were standing in the middle while the host sat on his chair from behind his desk with both arms crossed. Chris just stared at them with a small grin before speaking up.

"So...you two want to take on the challenge, huh?" He said with a raised brow at both of them. "You to do know about the heavy consequence of failure, right?"

"Please, let me do this alone! I don't want Ginger to lose her chance because of me!" Lucette begged.

"Shut it, Lucette! I already told you I'm not letting you do this alone!" Ginger argued back at her.

"But-"

"Quiet! Both of you." Chris said dismissively. Both girls just kept their mouths shut. "Good. I already accepted her request so you have no choice in the matter." The heiress just looked sad after hearing this. "Anyways, as the condition states, I'll be choosing the challenge the two of you will be doing." A devious smile soon formed on his face. "And I say you two will be taking on the mirror challenge." Both girls were shocked to hear this.

"What? You can't be serious? There is no way we can handle that!" Ginger tried to argue. "You have to reconsider!" She pleaded. Chris just let out a soft chuckle.

"That was the deal." He smirked. "Skell, send them back to their cabins." The door to his office soon opened with Skell standing on the other side.

"Let's go." The co-host motioned for them to leave. Ginger, with her fists clenched tightly, just turned around and left.

"Fine. Let's go, Lucette." She said before leaving. Her roommate didn't say anything and followed suit. Skell closed the office door as soon as they were both out.

The scene now cut ahead to both girls silently walking towards their cabin late at night. All the cabin lights were off except for their own who's lights were left on. As the two entered their cabin, they were both greeted with a surprise guest waiting for them inside.

"P-Paris? What are you doing in here?" Ginger questioned. The dancer was just sitting quietly in one of the wooden chairs facing the doorway with her legs crossed.

"Ginger. We need to talk. Privately." Paris gave Lucette a sharp stare. Ginger took in a heavy gulp after hearing this.

"Lucette. Wait outside. Alright?" Ginger told her friend to do so. Lucette just nodded and slowly closed the door on her way out. The heiress soon left with her footsteps slowly receding away. "What do you want?" She now asked when she was sure they were out of ear shot.

"Simple. All you need to do is explain yourself." Paris answered in a soft, even, and ominous sounding tone. Ginger just felt hard-pressed to find an answer.

"Well, um, you see..." Ginger trailed off while thinking over an answer. Her eyes lit up for an idea came to her know. "Its so that we can establish a bigger alliance for merge!" She answered. "Think about it, if Lucette is already safe for merge that's one more vote for us! And if Blake makes it, that's two since they always vote together!" She explained.

"I see." Paris nodded her head in agreement. Ginger felt relieved after seeing this. "Or..." The latter flinched after hearing this. "You could eliminate her now and save us the trouble."

"What!? You can't be serious?" Ginger was shocked about this.

"Why? Can't do it?" Paris asked her in a soft tone. Ginger felt very pressured now.

"N-no its just that my plan and all. You have to reconsider!" Ginger pleaded.

"I did. And I see it as a wasted effort." The dancer answered.

"What about you though? If I pull through with this that'll give me the win by default!" Ginger argued back at her.

"Don't worry. I have my own plans." Paris let out a soft chuckle. She soon got up and walked towards her. "I trust you can do this...Friend." She said to her quietly before walking out. This left Ginger torn on what to do.

(Confessional)

Ginger: I...don't know what to do. On one hand Lucette is a good friend of mine but on the other is my own safety and alliance with Paris. I want to win this competition as much as anyone else but I don't want to do it through severed ties! I just hope the outcome I chose is for the best.

Lucette: Seeing Paris in our cabin and wanting to talk to Ginger raises some concerns for me. I have feeling my life is on the line for this. Why does it need to be like this? Maybe I should just give Ginger the chance instead to save her from all this.

(End Confessional)

* * *

"Welcome, everyone! Time for us to witness Ginger and Lucette take on today's special challenge!" Chris announced to all the remaining contestants. They were all gathered inside the challenge building with the two mentioned standing in the front. "Any words of encouragement for these two?"

"G-good luck, Lucette! H-hope that you see this t-through!" Phoebe encouraged her.

"Yeah. What she said." Blake chimed in.

"Whatever. This selfish effort of yours better be worth it." Alice snide.

"It was a surprise but, good luck to you as well, Ginger!" Laren said to her.

"Yeah. Best of luck to you as well." Paris calmly noted with a small smile. She gave her soft gaze afterwards.

"Hmph." Leonard just grunted for he couldn't care less.

"Thank you, everyone." Lucette gave a short bow.

"Yeah...thanks." Ginger felt quite unnerved.

"Is there anything wrong?" The heiress asked looking quite concerned.

"No. Nothings wrong. Just feeling nervous is all." Ginger lied with a weary smile. Lucette though just looked at her still feeling quite worried.

"Ladies! Are you two ready?" Chris injected himself in-between. Both girls just gave him a nod in response. "Well step right in to your pods and let's get this started!" He exclaimed. Both did as they were told and entered the pods next to each other.

"Hey Chris, how do you think this'll turn out? Only one of them can have the prize." Skell asked while seated by the control panel.

"Who knows?" The host shrugged with a slight grin. "We'll just have to wait and see."

* * *

"Okay. This is it. Are you ready?" Ginger asked Lucette as they stood outside the maze doors.

"Y-yeah." Lucette nodded in response.

Without anything else left to say, both girls entered the maze to begin their challenge. As they entered, a long hallway covered from floor to ceiling in reflective mirrors was laid ahead of them. Their reflections greeting them wherever they look. Moments later their entry way closed in on them leaving another mirror behind.

Bracing herself on what's to come, Ginger drew out her dual guns and held them on the ready with the shadow blades coming to life. "Stay close, alright? We'll make it through this." She assured as she took the lead. Lucette followed closely behind with her staff held close to her chest. As the both of them went on deeper in the maze, a figure exited the mirrors and watched them go.

"Hehehe. This is going to be fun." It said ominously in an echoed voice. It quickly entered the mirrors once more and disappeared.

Moving carefully through the reflective halls, both girls managed to reach the end of the first of many paths for their reflections were already ahead of them.

"Damn. Where to know?" Ginger looked all over but saw only herself.

"Ginger! There's a path over here!" Lucette pointed out from a couple steps behind her.

"Nice eye!" The former now praised as they both walked through the path.

After some time both girls managed to make it deeper into the maze though progress was starting to get slower and slower. The deeper they go the more disorienting it got for they couldn't easily tell the different between reflections and open paths. Ginger was doing her best to keep her head straight as they venture deeper in but unbeknownst to her that Lucette was slowly lagging behind.

"Ginger...hold for a bit..." The latter said in-between breaths. She was already hunched over with her hands on her knees and looked quite tired. The former didn't notice this and just kept on walking. "Hey...wait..." She picked up the pace and tried to catch up but suddenly got stopped when an invisible wall got in her path. "What? Ginger!" She started banging on the wall but nothing happened. Moments later she stopped and gasped as her reflection suddenly formed right in-front of her looking back with an ominous look.

"Hello, Lucette. Its a pleasure to meet you." Her reflection said back to her with an echoed and distorted version of her own voice. It started stepping forward causing Lucette to move back.

"S-stay back!" Lucette held her staff right in-front of her. She was noticeably trembling in fear. Her reflected version just chuckled softly at her.

"Don't worry. I'm not here to hurt you. Just keep you company." The reflection assured with a sweet smile. "Though I can't say much for your friend." She flicked her fingers and soon another copy appeared on the other side. The other copy tauntingly tossed her hair back at Lucette before quickly giving chase to Ginger.

"No!" Lucette tried to run the other way but to her surprise a mirror was there to greet her. "Huh?"

"There's no use running. I control everything here in this maze. I can even distort this place as much as I please." The reflection explained with a devious grin. "Now, let's talk for a bit."

* * *

"Ugh. Another dead end!" Ginger looked deeply frustrated now as she stared at her own reflection. "Start going back the other way, Lucette. We might find another path." She turned only to see the Lucette copy staring at her with a blank expression. The copy had a bow drawn and pointing downwards with a crystal arrow notched.

"There's no need to rush. We can stay here for while." The copy Lucette said softly while slowly approaching.

"Uhh, Lucette? You okay or something?" Ginger asked looking a bit confused.

"Yeah. But you won't." The copy instantly aimed and fired. Ginger barely managed to dodge the attack and the arrow just flew by her face. "Tsk."

"Wah? What's gotten in to you?" Ginger felt quite shocked from what just happened. The copy didn't give a response and pulled back on the bow string. Another crystal arrow formed as it did and quickly fired another shot. Ginger managed to shatter the arrow mid-air using her shadow blades. "Hold on, you're not Lucette! You're that mirror demon!" She aimed her twin guns at the copy now. "Where is she!"

"Hmph. You don't need to know that." The Lucette copy notched another crystal arrow and quickly fired. Ginger managed to dodge this as well and charged forward.

"Hah!" She slashed her long shadow blade horizontally but the copy ducked under it with ease. It retaliated back by jabbing a newly formed crystal arrow but Ginger barely was able to side step out of it. She used this opening now to jab with the other shadow blades but the copy parried her entire arm away with the bow. It soon shoulder bashed Ginger into the wall. "Gah..." The wall shattered causing small bits to impale her.

"Grrr...Get off!" Ginger roared back at it as she kicked the copy away. It slammed hard on the opposite wall causing both to shatter. She soon took off running down the maze. "I need...to find her..."

* * *

"Oh! It seems she managed to shatter my clone." R. Lucette noted as she felt her copy shatter. "No matter. I can easily make another." She said coolly.

"What do you want with us anyway!" Lucette confronted her reflection.

"No reason. I just want to torture you guys is all." The former laughed. "While we're on the topic, what brings you here? This place is too harsh for your class." She deadpanned.

"None of your business!" Lucette yelled though her voice wasn't convincing.

"Oh really?" R. Lucette giggled. "Considering you are in my domain makes your purpose my business. So let me ask you again. What brings you here." She asked in a more serious tone. Lucette started to shake in fear for she didn't know what to do.

"Lucette!" Ginger's voice suddenly interrupted them followed by running foot steps. "Where are you!"

"Ginger?" Lucette perked up a bit after hearing this. Soon enough she saw Ginger running down the hall towards them. "Ginger! Ginger! I'm over here! Help!" Lucette pressed herself on the wall in-front of her and started banging it. Her friend soon stopped right in-front of her looking heavily beaten and panting heavily. "Oh thank God you're hear, Ginger. You don't know- Ginger?"

"Lucette! Where are you!" Ginger just stood there pacing her head between two paths on both of her sides. Moments later she bolted down the path to her right leaving Lucette quite shocked as to what just happened.

"Ginger? Ginger! Where are you going? I'm right here!" The heiress tried to call out to her but it was of no use. Ginger just ran deeper down the path with her foot steps slowly receding. "What? How come she didn't see or hear me?" R. Lucette just laughed at her confusion.

"Two-way mirror, my dear. And like I said before, I can distort this place as much as I please." She continued on to giggle.

"Wait. You mean..."

"That's right, dear. I can trap her here forever if I want!" The latter started laughing maniacally now. "I can even let you watch her run aimlessly here forever." With a snap of her fingers the wall right in-front of her started distorting a bit before clearing up to see a perfect view of Ginger running down the maze while at the same time calling for her. "I wonder how long she can last?"

"You monster! How can you do such a thing?!" Lucette accused her reflection.

"Oh please. At least it's sparing her from-" R. Lucette paused for a sudden realization came to her. "Oh I get it. You two are here to slay that creature huh?" She started chuckling softly to herself for an idea soon came. "Why didn't you tell me sooner? Watching her die by her own hands would make for a far better form of entertainment." She flicked her fingers and soon the maze started to discreetly shift around. Moments later the Ginger on their screen soon happened upon a spacious area that largely resembles an arena.

"Now. You're going to watch her die by her own hands." R. Lucette started laughing evilly.

"No!"

* * *

"Huh? What is this place?" Ginger looked around with a bit of confusion as she walked towards the center of the arena.

"Welcome..." A hollowed and echoed voice greeted her.

"Who's there!" She aimed her guns forward only to see a person covered entirely by a pure white robe with it's hood up masking their face. "Who are you? Are you the one that took Lucette?" Ginger asked harshly.

"I'm sorry. But I don't know who it is that you speak." The robed person answered. Their voice sounded more feminine now and almost matching Ginger's. "Though seeing she isn't here, she's most likely dead if not dying." This struck Ginger the wrong way. "I'm sure you are thinking the same."

"You lie! That isn't true. There is no way I'd think of her like that!" Ginger angrily said back. The robed person merely chuckled at her.

"That may be so but I know deep down that you wish for it to be the case in order to avoid a decision that you'll soon regret." The latter confronted her about it. The former felt shocked after hearing this.

"What? I don't know what you are talking about!" Ginger denied the accusation.

"No need to deny it. For you see..." The robed person trailed off to remove their hood. Ginger gasped at what she saw. "I'm you." She smiled now.

"That's impossible! Who are you?!" Ginger demanded.

"No need to be harsh. My name is Zephiel. A pleasure." She introduced with a slight bow. "And since I know you already, along with your purpose, let's get this started. Shall we?" Zephiel removed her robe and casted it aside to reveal her armor matching with Ginger's down to each detail with the only exemption of it being purely white. A sheathed blade was shown to be attached to the side of her belt.

"I don't have time for this!" Ginger growled and tried to run back the way she came only to be stopped by someone standing in her way.

"Nope. I don't think so." A copy of Eliza wearing a white version of her outfit stood between Ginger and the exit. She had a small grin on her face as well as having one hand on her hip. She held twin prismatic daggers by their handles with her other hand.

"Dammit. Out of the way!" Ginger let loose a barrage of shots at the Eliza copy.

With a quick hand gesture the copy was able to cast a barrier protecting her from the shots. She soon lobed the dagger towards Ginger and charged with the other on-hand. The latter managed to back-step away from the upcoming slash but the former caught her dagger as it fell and performed a back swing. Ginger though managed to duck under it and roll away to safety.

"Shit...that was close..." Ginger panted as she took up a defensive stance with her guns crossed.

"Hmm. Not bad. I wouldn't expect no less." Zephiel mused. "My turn. Eliza. To me!" She held out her right hand. The clone nodded and held it tight. Zephiel quickly swung her arm around causing Eliza to morph into a gun and aimed it at her. "Good bye." She sprayed Ginger with shots while charging at her with her long sword drawn.

A barrier formed in-front of Ginger absorbing the shots. As Zephiel got close she quickly swung her blade causing the barrier to shatter instantly. She then quickly jabbed forward but Ginger just managed to move out of the way. With the latter fully exposed, the former tried to cross slash her but a barrier quickly formed protecting her from the attack. Zephiel quickly jumped out of the way and took on a defensive stance.

"What? How are you able to do that so fast?" Ginger was astonished from what she saw.

"I'm designed to be a near perfect version of anyone I come across. Meaning I'm a better you in every single aspect." Zephiel explained coolly.

"Grrr. I doubt it!" Ginger argued back. She quickly charged and slash at Zephiel with her shadow blades but her opponent just simply back flipped away from her. "If you are me then why are you running?"

"I'm not. Look up." Zephiel instructed.

Ginger looking up saw that she had tossed her sword up into the air. As it spun around it soon morphed into a Tricia copy. After doing a few aerial flips she drew out a prismatic long sword and dived down towards Ginger. Ginger managed to dodge away from the attack but failed to notice Zephiel charging towards her

"Forgetting something?" Zephiel taunted as she jabbed a dagger through Ginger's abdomen. The sudden shock of the attack was enough for Ginger to drop her guns and lose her balance. Zephiel quickly pulled it out causing Ginger to collapse with blood quickly pooling around.

"D-damn..." Ginger groaned and winced in pain as she coughed up some blood.

"Ginger!" The sisters said in unison as they morphed into their human forms to protect her. Eliza readied her shadow arm blades and faced Zephiel.

"You'll pay for this!" She attempted to swing at him but the Tricia copy grabbed her arm. "What?! Urk…" The copy stabbed Eliza in the back with her sword forcing her to morph back to her gun form

"Sister!" Tricia tried to go help her sister but was suddenly pulled down from behind. Looking up she saw it to be the Eliza copy. She tried to get away from her but was too late for her throat got slit by the clones dagger. She morphed back into her gun form soon after.

"How sweet. These two finally showed up only to prove themselves worthless." Zephiel chuckled softly. "Too bad they are no where near compared to mine." She laughed.

Ginger didn't say anything and just kept a sharp glare up with her teeth gritted. She attempted to stand back up only to fall back down groaning in pain.

"Don't bother. You'll only die quicker by doing so." Zephiel scoffed.

"F-fuck you!..." Ginger cursed and groaned some more.

"And there's that sharp tongue I've been waiting for. I swear, its like I know you like the back of my hand. Oh wait! I do." Zephiel started to laugh at her own joke. "Oh well. Its time to end this. Tricia. Eliza. You two know what to do." She commanded them.

The copied sisters gave her a nod and walked towards the mirror knight. They held on to each of her hand before morphing into their gun forms. Zephiel crossed her arms and grinned

"I bet you remember this." She said to her. Both her guns started to glow brightly. "Freikugel!" Her guns started to morph and reshape themselves and combine to form a rifle. As the lights died down the rifle looked to be of high caliber nearly resembling an AWP complete with a powerful scope and stock. Zephiel easily held the rifle with one hand and stood with her body facing side-ways as she aimed directly at Ginger.

"Its a shame you haven't mastered how to do it on your own with your new guns. This could have been a way more entertaining fight if you did." Zephiel chuckled softly. "Oh well, nothing I could do. Good bye!"

* * *

Meanwhile some place else deep in the maze while the battle was taking place. Lucette was watching on in fright and horror as she watched her close friend getting beaten badly by Zephiel.

"No!" She exclaimed as she watched Ginger get stabbed in her gut. She started to tear up as she saw Ginger fall. Lucette now dropped onto her knees and began to cry.

"Entertaining, is it?" R. Lucette said sarcastically from behind her. The princess didn't say a word for she was already sulking. "Its a shame really. With her skill she could've easily made it to the top." She shook her head in disappointment. "I wonder what made her do this?"

"...It's all my fault..." Lucette said weakly. The latter though looked quite interested for what else the former has to say.

"What was that? I didn't quite catch that." R. Lucette smirked.

"I said it was all my fault..." Lucette repeated. "I begged her not to but she wouldn't listen..."

"Oh. So you're the one to blame for her loss huh?" The latter snickered. "Oh well. Nothing left to be done other than watch." She shrugged.

"...*sniff*...Please..." Lucette said weakly as she watched Ginger struggle. "Please I beg you. Let me go and help my friend out. I don't want to see her go like this!" She begged.

"Why would I?" R. Lucette scoffed. "Even if I did there is no way you can make it over there to see her body disappear. Even more so to help?" She argued. "But then again I could send you there myself but where's the point in that? You'll both die anyways. I might as well save the other death for myself." She mused herself.

"I don't care if its going to be a failed effort! I just...I just want to be their for her like she did with me..." Lucette frowned. "So please...I'll do anything in return." Tears started flowing down.

"Anything you say? What is it that you could ever possibly do for me?" R. Lucette questioned as she watched the contestant sob right in-front of her. Her eyes lit up for an idea suddenly came to her causing her to grin. "Well, there is one thing. Though I'm not sure you are up for it so nevermind." She said with a sly grin.

"Tell me! Please!" Lucette insisted.

"Alright since you insist." The reflection's grin grew wider. "I simply ask for you two allow me to join you in this little game. Having all this power is worthless if I have no one to use it on." She chuckled lightly. "So what do you say?"

Lucette, seeing as though she has no other options, just simply nodded as her response knowing full well this could he a bad idea.

"That's a good girl!" R. Lucette held her hand open. "Give me your hand for a moment, dear."

Lucette obliging with her command placed her hand on top. The mirrors surrouding them started glowing blindingly bright until everything was fully consumed in light.

* * *

"Oh well, nothing much I could do. Good bye!" Zephiel squeezed the trigger allowing a bullet to fly. As she took her shot a mirror shattered right in-front of her instead completely nullifying her attack. "What?!" Her eyes widened as she noticed who stopped her attack. "You!"

"Hello, old friend." R. Lucette greeted with a calm smile as she stood right in-front of her. Behind her was Lucette who was kneeling down next to Ginger.

"Ginger! Ginger!" Lucette exclaimed with tears flowing down from her eyes while shaking Ginger's left arm.

"Lu...*cough*..." Ginger said weakly before fainting. A pain filled expression was casted upon her face with her breathing staggered.

"Ginger!" Lucette noticing the growing pool of blood under her needed to act fast as she raised her staff. "Please be alright." The crystal started emitting a green light covering Ginger in a bright green veil. Moments later the light died down with the blood pool no longer growing. Ginger's face calmed down as a result with her breathing also steadying. "Thank God I made it." She let out a sigh of relief.

"What in blazes do you think you're doing?!" Zephiel growled.

"What else? Stopping you of course!" R. Lucette replied with a smile.

"I can see that! But as for what purpose? Surely that pathetic little girl didn't talk you into doing this." Zephiel gave Lucette a sharp glare before returning her gaze back to her new opponent.

"Of course not! I just simply struck a deal with her is all." The reflection explained.

"A deal? What could you have possibly made an agreement on causing you to turn on me?" The former interrogated further.

"Easy. She'll be my ticket out of here. Being cooped up in here is getting quite boring ya'know?" The latter answered. Zephiel didn't take her response to kindly.

"Exit out of here? This is where you draw your life force from! Leaving this place will only cause you your certain death. Have you ever thought of that?" Zephiel argued.

"That's why I'm helping them. Look closely." R. Lucette gestured towards Lucette. Zephiel soon took notice of a silver ring with a small platinum jewel on top glowing brightly.

"I see. Well, to bad this where they'll die. For this will be over quick." Zephiel readied her rifle with the barrel pointing low creating a click sound at the end. R. Lucette simply let out a small smile and stretched her left arm out to the side. A barrier separating them from the contestants soon appeared glistening slightly.

"I doubt it." She grinned. "Your move."

Scoffing first, Zephiel quickly charged forward with her rifle aimed low. Mid way through her charge she suddenly leaped up high doing single spin in the air. Her rifle glowed and morphed in the process turning into a halberd with a crystalline blade. She slammed her weapon down but R. Lucette just simply side stepped away from the attack.

"Ha!" The former attempted to sweep her away but the latter gracefully vaulted over the attack. Zephiel quickly followed it up with a lunge but was again easily side stepped which allowed for her opponent to get behind her

"Impressive, but not enough." R. Lucette raised her right hand up in order to cast her spell. Mirrors suddenly appeared surrounding Zephiel and trapping her inside. "Shatter!" She closed her hand causing all the mirrors to glow brightly before bursting into pieces. Shards started flying everywhere as the field was consumed by a blinding light. As the light faded no traces of the mirror knight was left on the scene.

"I guess that's that." She shrugged and chuckled softly.

"Look out!" Lucette yelled.

The reflection hearing this looked towards her and saw her pointing upwards. Looking up now she saw Zephiel quickly diving downwards with the tip of her weapon aimed right at her.

"Whoa!" The attack landed mere inches away from her with the weapon driven deep onto the floor.

"Ha!" Zephiel used her weapon as a pole and spin kicked R. Lucette straight on her stomach. The former managed to block the kick with her arms but went sliding backwards due to the force of it. The latter now quickly pulled her halberd out from the ground to follow it up.

She twirled her weapon causing it to glow and pulled it apart to morph it back into her twin guns. She quickly tossed one of her guns in the air and morphed the other into twin daggers. Zephiel went in for a cross slash and landed a direct hit. She then combined the daggers together to revert it back to its gun form and caught the other as it fell. The gun quickly morphed into a sword and slashed it downwards landing another heavy blow making R. Lucette stagger backwards. Zephiel now went in for a jab with the blade piercing through her back. The reflection now fell onto her knees as a result.

"Like I said, this'll be over quick." The mirror knight tried to pull the sword out from the reflection's chest but was stopped when she grabbed it by it's blade.

"Y-yeah...but who's to say you're the one winning this?" R. Lucette said weakly with a small smile. She made a quick hand gesture pointing up, left, and right making three crystal orbs to appear out lf thin air. Zephiel tried to pull away from her but was grabbed by the wrist. "Shatter..." Multicolored beams started shooting from the orbs as they circle around.

"Aaaaah!" Zephiel let out an agonizing scream for the constant stream of light was to much for her to handle. Her body started to glow bright until her figure was fully consumed by light. Moments later the lights pulsed out for a bit before slowly shrinking down. Small sparkles of light were left behind as the light died down.

"Heh...good bye, friend..." R. Lucette stood up and slowly walked towards the barrier she created. With a swift hand motion she dispelled the barrier and walked towards Lucette who was still tending to Ginger. "Let's go. She'll be back..." She warned as she took the lead and slowly limped on ahead. Lucette scrambled to get on her feet and dragged Ginger on her shoulder's.

Both of them walked all the way to the other side of the arena where a large, closed gateway stood in-front of them. The gates slowly slid open from their presence which lead to deep and dimly lit long hallway.

"Well, I guess this is as far as I'll take you." R. Lucette let out a soft yawn. "I'm very tired now so if you need anything don't bother calling. I'm tired of your shit right now." Letting out another yawn the reflection slowly started to fade away until the gem on her ring stopped glowing. Looking straight ahead, Lucette took in a deep breath to prepare herself for what's next.

"Okay! Here we go!" She pumped herself up before moving on. As the young princess continue to walk deeper down the hall she soon spotted a bright light at the other end. Getting closer and closer she walked on forward until everything was fully consumed by the bright light with nothing left to be seen until...

"*gasp* Huh? What?" Lucette escaped out of her pod and back into the real world. Looking around her she noticed no one else was there with her. Looking beside her now she saw Ginger had fallen out of hers and was on the floor. Light snoring can be heard from her signifying that she had fallen asleep.

"Welcome back!" Chris exclaimed as he greeted Lucette. "I see you two survived the challenge!" He grinned.

"Thanks but where are the others? I thought they were supposed to be in here watching us?" Lucette asked looking a bit confused.

"Them? I sent them back to their cabins. I only allowed them to watch you guys go but not the entire thing." The host answered. "That means no one knows yet that both of you survived! As well as that bonus you got along the way." He said with a slight grin. Lucette felt a bit uneasy about that. "Anyways!" Chris clapped his hands. "Since both of you made it out alive its time for the both of you to decide who gets the reward!" He reminded her now. "Though considering Ginger is asleep the decision falls on you now." A devious grin soon formed on the host's face. "So who will it be then?"

Lucette thinking back to everything she just experienced made the decision difficult for her to decide. After a while of thinking it over she finally came to a conclusion.

"I'll...let Ginger have it." Lucette now answered. Chris felt quite intrigued as to what made her make such a decision.

"Hmm, how kind of you to do so and quite unexpected" The latter commented. "Tell me though, what made you give it to her?" He now asked.

"Thinking back on it she risked everything for me so I figured that giving it to her is the least I could do." The former answered with a sad look as she starred at Ginger laying right beside her.

"I see." Chris said with a small nod. "Are you sure about that though?"

"Yes. I'm sure." Lucette confirmed.

"Good." The host snapped his fingers and soon two interns appeared. "Take Ginger here to her special room." He commanded them both. The two interns just nodded and carried Ginger out of the building.

"Where are you taking her?" The princess asked with a worried tone.

"Oh just a special place deep in the forest where she'll wait things out until merge finally hits." Chris answered. "Don't worry. She'll be fine." He assured.

"Will I still get to see her until then though?" Lucette hoped.

"Nope!" Chris said with a mischievous laugh. "Anyways..." He snapped his fingers again for another intern to appear. "For now though, go with this intern. He'll lead you to a secret place where no one can find you." He explained.

"Huh? For what reason?" Lucette looked very confused from this.

"To make sure no one knows who won yet." The host answered. "I'll announce it to everyone before the challenge starts so for now let's just keep it as a surprise." He then motioned for the intern to take her. The intern nodded.

"Follow me." The intern said to Lucette while leading her towards the back.

"I see." Lucette complied and followed the intern. Both of them were soon gone with a door shutting close being heard in the background.

With the host now alone the camera started to slowly zoom in on him. A small smile was shown across his face as he stared deeply into the camera.

"Well our dear viewers. All of you just witnessed our very first merge contestant for this season as well as a special companion for one of our contestants." Chris took a dramatic pause to take in a deep breath. "How do you guys think Ginger will react once she wakes up in her special room? Will Lucette survive the next couple of challenges due to her new friend's presence? Will this new companion of Lucette actually be of any help? And how will Paris' game plan work out now that her only ally got ahead of her? Find out next time on Total...Drama...Dungeon Hunters!"

* * *

Places:

18th: Estwynn Paratus. The Mech and Hero Enthusiast. Role: Fighter

17th: Derek Wright. The Dangerous Outcast. Role: Fighter

16th: Kali Dulal. The Folklore/Mythology Enthusiast. Role: Duelist

15th: Tristan Kelly. The Mechanic. Role: Backrow

14th: Gelsey. The Smol Girl. Role: Support

13th: Janet Jordan. The Loner. Role: Tank

* * *

 **Author's note: Well, here you guys go. The first special challenge. I apologize for this being very short due to the amount of time it took. I wanted this to be as decent as possible since it was requested by two different people and I didn't want to disappoint. Because of that a lot of delays happened due to multiple revisions and some writer's block. Also no question for today since I already asked one for the next actual challenge. You guys can still PM me about stuff if y'all want to though. Lastly no more asking for the other bonus since well merge is only a three chapters away and I've already confirmed who's going to be in the merge along with a returnee/s and have made a plot for it so yeah. Anyways, that is all. Hopefully you all enjoyed so 'till next time!**


	13. Playing or Praying

"Last time, or more rather two episodes ago, on Total Drama Dungeon Hunters. Our two teams took on the quite unexpected dating challenge!" Chris started off his recap with his trademark smile. "Its also important to note that two ex-contestants of our show made a special appearance to both host and facilitate last time's challenge." A still image of both Nicholas and Alysson is shown on screen.

"After long and steamy dates a team was soon declared a winner after another tie breaker match. Only this time to be won by our very first merge contestant Ginger!" A replay of Ginger walking up the stage to give Alysson a quick kiss was shown. "With the Elves victory came the defeat of the Wolves for they were sent to elimination the following night." An image of the Diamond Dusk Wolves sitting around the camp fire is shown.

"Just like what I said last time, Lucette was the one who's supposed to go that night but due to her and Ginger's intervention Janet caught the bullet instead." A replay of Janet leaving with Chris is shown. As the replay ended the camera started to slowly zoom in on the host who held a wide grin across his face.

"Will the Wolves be able to patch up what remains of their pack and seize victory once more? Will the glorious Elves be able to keep their throne? Will Lucette's new friend cause a whole new set of troubles? And how will Ginger react once she wakes up from her sleep? Find out now on Total...Drama...Dungeon Hunters!" Chris exclaimed as he opened up his arms dramatically.

~Theme Song~

Later that same day after Lucette and Ginger's bonus challenge. The latter was shown to be laying down on a single bed with pink and floral patterns and a fluffy white pillow under her head. After a short while her eyes started twitching and eventually woke up.

"Mmm...Huh? Where am I?" Ginger quickly sat up and inspected the room around her. The room she's in was small with blue colored walls. Beside her bed was a small drawer with a lamp placed on top of it and just next to that is a window where the sunlight is entering from. Quickly getting on her feet she felt the soft, white, carpeted floor beneath her and ran towards the window. Looking out she noticed that the window was barred up and a dense forest lay passed it.

"Where is this place?" She questioned. Ginger then inspected herself only to realize she is wearing her regular outfit once more. "And am I back in the real world?" She pondered. The door to her room suddenly creaked open catching her by surprise. "Who's there!"

"Oh! I see you've woken up." A woman wearing a maid's outfit and long, bright blue hair said from behind the door. She looked quite surprised to see Ginger standing right in-front of her. Her surprised look soon turned to pleasure for she gave Ginger a warm smile and bowed gracefully. "Its a pleasure to finally meet you."

Ginger though looked a bit skeptical. "Okay. Who are you and why the hell am I here for?" She questioned the maid. "And where's Lucette? I need to make sure she's alright!" She added. The maid looking up from her position noticed the worried look in her new mistress' eyes. Exhaling softly she straightened herself up and met Ginger's gaze with her own.

"No need to worry. I can assure you everything is fine." The maid assured with a warm smile. "I'll indulge you in the details later over some tea. Please, right this way." She gave another short bow before leaving the room. Ginger still very unsure about everything decided to follow her out of the room.

Outside her room is a narrow, white hallway big enough for her to stretch only one arm to the side with a staircase leading down at the end. Beside her was another door with an oval multicolored frosted window. Opening it slowly she revealed it to be a bathroom. Pink tiles covered the bathroom walls with a porcelain bathtub at the end complete with a shower and sink. A circular mirror with a golden frame was placed above the sink. Seeing no need for the bathroom right now, Ginger closed the door and proceeded to walk down the hall.

Another door was spotted a few paces down the hall on the opposite side. Opening the door now revealed it to be smaller version of the challenge room. Dark blue panes covered the walls with neon lights flashing about. A single empty pod was at the end of the room with a small control panel similar to the one back at the challenge building was beside. After seeing all this, she immediately closed the door and pressed her back against it.

"What is this place?" Ginger started to ponder.

"Mistress Ginger, please come on down. Someone is here to speak with you." The maid called for her from downstairs. Ginger still unsure about her situation decided to head downstairs and get answers from their. As she reached the bottom of the staircase the maid was standing right there to meet here. "Please. Right this way." She smiled before taking her leave to lead Ginger somewhere else.

The lower floor was a spacious room designed to be a living room of sorts. A light brown couch was placed near the center with a glass coffee table right in-front of it and an oval carpet underneath. Across from her now is a large, flat screen TV with tall speakers on both sides. Potted plants were placed on each corner of the room to finish of the room's interior design. A closed wooden door was placed next to the staircase presumably leading to the outside.

Ginger now done with taking in her surroundings followed the maid to another room. The other room was a mix of both a dining room and a kitchen. A rectangular dining table was placed in the center of the room surrounded with seats. To her surprise she saw Chris sitting on a chair across the table from where she stood with a tea cup in hand. He took a sip of his tea before placing it down on the table.

"Hmm, given by that look of uncertainty you have it seems as though you've done a bit of exploring." Chris pointed out with a small grin. "So what do you think? Pretty nice, right?"

"I have no time for your shit, Chris! Tell me, what am I doing out here in the real world and what happened to Lucette?" Ginger started to question him. Chris' smile soon faded as he took another quick sip of his tea.

"How rude. And to think I've spent quite a lot of money in constructing this place just for you." The latter shook his head in disappointment. "Well, not specifically for you but for anyone who was brave enough, or dumb enough, to take on the bonus and win. You get the idea." He chuckled softly. "Such a shame really."

Ginger's eyes suddenly widened. "Wait. I won? But how? All I remember after the fight was that I passed out and...Please don't tell me Lucette-"

"No. She didn't. She's still competing." Chris said plainly, cutting her off. Ginger placed a hand on her chest and a let out a sigh of relief

"That's good to hear." She took in a deep breath. "How was she able to do it though?"

"Oh let's just say she struck a deal." Chris chuckled lightly. Ginger though didn't understand. "You'll find out about it eventually." He waved her off. "Anyways, I have some matters to attend to so." The host paused and stood up before turning to face the maid. "I'll leave her in your capable hands, Luciel." He said before making his way towards the front door.

"Will do, mi'lord." She gave Chris a slight bow with a sweet.

"Oh. And do keep the noise down at night. You're not the only one who's staying here." The host said before finally taking his leave. The sound of a door closing echoed throughout the room. The two girls where now left on their own.

"So what shall I help you with first? Tea? Or redemption?" Luciel gave Ginger an innocent smile. The latter didn't know how to respond to that.

"Wh-what?" She stammered a bit. The former just giggled softly.

* * *

The next day. The scene now returned to the main area where everyone else was. The time was already mid-day for the sun was high up and beaming down on everything down below. The grounds were empty for everyone was done with their morning routines. Moments later the flaps from the food tent opened up with Alice exiting with a huff as Kazuo followed right behind. The former though looked quite annoyed with the latter for he was telling her a story of some kind.

"And that's the story of my dead leaf." Kazuo said with a wide grin. "Want to hear another story?" He asked, still grinning.

"No!" Alice answered without hesitation. "Why are you even telling me this?"

"No real reason. I just remembered telling Alysson this story once when he first tried to flirt with me." Kazuo reasoned. Alice felt even more pissed after hearing it.

"How the fuck do I remind you of that cross-dressing pervert?!" She angrily spat at him with a steely gaze. Kazuo though didn't flinch at all and just kept up his wide grin.

"Well not you per se but your name certainly does!" He beamed. "Or at least to a certain extent." He added. Alice furrowed her brow and took in a deep breath. She crossed her arms and gave him a sharp glare.

"Kazuo. Say that to me again and I'll rip you to pieces." She said with a hint of restraint. Kazuo though tilted his head.

"Say what? You remind me of Aly-"

"Nope. I don't want to hear it!" Alice abruptly cut him. She turned her heel around to face back towards the cabins. "And stop following me!" She said before taking her leave.

"Hmm, I wonder what's gotten into her all of a sudden?" Kazuo pondered to himself while standing there still in thought. He soon shrugged. "Oh well. Maybe Phoebe would enjoy a cool lizard story!" He merrily skipped along now towards Phoebe's cabin. A door suddenly slamming open with some loud shrieking was suddenly heard from the distance. "Hey Phoebe! Want to hear a story!"

"Aaaah! Phoebe's screaming was echoing out.

"KAZUO!" Leonard was heard yelling his name as well.

(Confessional)

Alice: Grrr! That Kazuo. I hate him! I hate him! I hate him! Hmph. Saying I remind him of that trash makes it such an insult! If he's so fond of that girly-boy then why not just get together with him once this all blows over?...Hmmmm. Why do I even bother feeling this way? Its not like anything good is going to come out from him anyways!

Kazuo: *rubs arm* Man that Leonard can sure pack a mean punch. It was so strong in fact that I think my entire right shoulder is probably broken! Hahahaha! No but in all seriousness it might most likely be broken and I don't know what to do. Will this get transferred over in the virtual world I wonder?

Phoebe: Um, w-why did Kazuo suddenly b-barge into mine and Leonard's cabin to tell us a s-story about his pet lizard? I-I got so terrified th-that I nearly cried.

Leonard: Why did that lunatic Kazuo suddenly entered my cabin? It was bad enough Phoebe had a panic attack but he just had to make it worst by wanting to tell us a story about his damn lizard! I swear if I see him in the streets one day I'm going to tear him a new one!

(End confessional)

* * *

(Cabin 6: Paris and Blake's)

The scene now shifted to inside Paris and Blake's cabin. Both of them were still inside just minding their own with silence between them. The dancer just sat on one of the wooden chairs, legs crossed, and her head resting atop her hand. She just had her eyes set on her right hand examining her nails. Varying nail polish were spread out right in-front of her.

"Hmm. You think red will be a good colour for my nails?" She asked the prankster who was laying on top of his bed with both arms under his head. Blake though looked like he couldn't care any less. "I mean they do match both my hair and dress." She added.

"How the hell am I supposed to know? I'm not a girl nor am I into these sorts of things!" Blake answered. Paris though didn't even batter an eye to this.

"Or maybe pink for some sort of contrast?" She asked, ignoring Blake's statement.

"Are you even listening to me?" Blake sat up now to face her with a serious look.

"Yes but I still need an opinion. Any thoughts?" Paris answered back without even giving him the slightest glance.

"I don't know! You can put on a myriad of colours for all I care!" Blake said rather a bit aggressively.

"Hmm nah. I'd look like some emo freak show." Paris retorted. "Anything else?" The prankster was about done with her at this point.

"That's it! Im outta here!" He said in frustration before standing up. Blake soon walked out on her with the door slamming shut.

Blake walking out of his cabin decided to go towards the challenge building. Putting both hands in his pockets he started to press on towards the central building. As he got close the glass doors opened up to let him through. Entering now, he saw the two hosts staying by the control panel and looks to both be in a heated argument.

"I'm sorry Chris, but I just can't go through with hosting this challenge! It goes though with everything taboo!" Skell argued with a steely gaze directed at Chris.

"Oh lighten up. It's all happening in a non-existent fantasy world!" Chris retorted back at him. "The 'evil god' is made up and creating life through alchemy is just a theory! Its not like we're breaking any fundamental laws of nature or something?" He proceeded to argue. "Only a religious nut-job will believe all of this is real!"

"Still, we're adhering to this none the less!" The former reminded. "Can we at least tone it down for something more suitable for the audience?" He suggested. The latter was about to say something back when Blake suddenly interrupted them.

"Um, what's going on here?" The prankster spoke up as he approached the two hosts.

"How long have you been here?" Skell looked at him with a questioning look.

"It doesn't matter." Chris waved him off. "You were just about to call the other contestants. Weren't you?" He gave his partner a sharp glare.

"Fine!" Skell scoffed before turning around to face the control panel to make his announcement. Blake though, was still confused about the entire situation.

After a couple minutes had passed all the remaining contestants have gathered around inside the challenge building. Everyone stood by their team's awaiting for the next challenge to be announced. Chris was gone for the time being, leaving Skell alone seated at the front silently observing them.

"What the fuck happened to you?" Alice pointed out as she watched Kazuo rubbing his injured arm.

"Nothing much. I just told Phoebe and Leonard an interesting story!" He answered with a wide grin. "Ain't that right, Phoebe?" Kazuo now asked the doll faced girl.

"Y-yeah..." Phoebe stammered with a weary smile as she slowly backed away from Kazuo. While doing so she accidentally backed up onto Clint. "S-s-sorry!" She blushed heavily and looked even more panicked now. Clint didn't say anything and just simply straightened out his shirt. He then placed a hand on top of Phoebe's head causing her to look down out of embarrassment now. "Umm..."

"How insufferable." Alice shook her head low as she watched the entire exchange. "At least she's useful."

"Oh come on now. No need to get jealous." Kazuo playful placed a hand on top of Alice's head. "If you wanted one you could just ask." He chuckled to himself. Alice angrily smacked Kazuo's hand off and gave his injured arm a quick jab causing him to groan out in pain.

"Don't you dare do that to me again!" Alice growled at him with a sharp glare.

"Aww. How sweet! It looks like couples are forming up quite nicely over by the other team." Laren noted as she watched them from her team's side. She then looked towards Blake who was just minding his own awaiting for the announcement. "Hmm. Except for Blake though. What do you think, Paris?" Laren asked, who was standing behind her.

"Hmm? Did you say something?" The dancer looked at her with some confusion. She was clearly deep in thought for she looked a bit distant.

"I said that its sad that Blake is all alone in his team ever since Lucette left and I wanted to know your opinion!" Laren restated her question. "Speaking about that though, what do you think happened to Ginger? Chris didn't say anything about what happened to them?" She pondered.

"I'm sure Ginger is fine. She is, after all, one of our stronger members." Paris said with a reassuring smile. "As for your other question. I'm glad she's gone. One less person to deal with." She said with a hint of spite to her words.

"How can you be sure though?" The former tilted her head slightly. The latter though had a small grin on her face.

"I'm just certain is all." Paris answered.

As a couple minutes had passed light foot steps was heard heading their way. Everyone looked towards the front now to see Chris walking in from the back of the room. A small grin was planted on his face as he watched everyone standing right in-front of him.

"I bet all of you are tired of waiting for the next challenge to start?" The host said to them. Mixed responses came from the contestants. "Well, too bad! Since I have an announcement to make first!" He said with a smirk. Soft groaning was heard from some of the contestants. "Anyways. All of you are aware on what took place yesterday, right?" Chris asked them. Everyone seemingly nodded as their response.

"Ooh! Are you going to finally tell us who won?" Laren asked out of excitement.

"Hah! Its pretty obvious what the results are if you ask me!" Dylan said adamantly. "Obviously Ginger got the prize and Lucette got the boot!" He said with a smug look on his face.

"Au contraire monsieur Dylan." Chris wagged a finger at him with a wide grin. Everyone was surprised to hear this as a result. Most notably Paris who was more shocked to hear this.

"Wait! You mean? Ginger lost?" Nathan was taken aback at the thought. "How so?"

"Yeah! And how the hell did that weakling managed to get out of it alive as well!?" Paris demanded. Chris though, just laughed at them.

"Tsk. Tsk. You guys got it all wrong. No one has been booted out from yesterday's bonus challenge." The host finally answered them with a smirk. "And with that, please come on in and show yourself!" He exclaimed while making a gesture for someone to come in from the back. Moments later soft foot steps was heard slowly approaching them. After a short while, Lucette finally showed herself to everyone with a weary smile on her face.

"Hi, everyone!" She said softly while doing a small wave. "I'm, uhh, back I guess."

"Lucette? How come you're still here? I thought you would've went ahead and taken the prize for yourself?" Blake thought back as he saw her. Lucette though, just pouted after hearing this.

"How rude! I thought you would be more than happy to see me! I guess I thought wrong. Hmph." The princess crossed her arms and looked away from him.

"Umm, why would I?" The latter said slowly while giving her a confused look. The former was shocked to hear this.

"Chris do something! Blake is being mean to me!" Lucette said while pointing at him.

"Huh? Wh-what did I do?"

"No. Now get back to your team." Chris said sternly.

"Fine!" Lucette walked back to her team and stood right beside Blake. She crossed her arms and looked away from him. Blake though was now lost for he didn't know what's going on now.

"Great. She's back." Alice said sarcastically while rolling her eyes. "More things for me to get annoyed at." She let out a sigh. Suddenly she felt a hand being placed on top of her head.

"Aww. You're being jealous again!" Kazuo said to her while rubbing her head. Alice smacked away his hand and kicked him down under. She soon stomped away from him. "Eep. I knew that was going to happen." He said, trying to hold back from screaming in pain.

"Well...at least their team has changed much even after yesterday's events." Laren commented with a warm smile as she watched the other team. "I wonder if it'll be the same if Ginger was in Lucette's place instead?" She started to ponder.

"Hmph. I doubt it." Paris muttered coolly under her breath as she kept a steely gaze at Lucette.

"What did you say?" Laren looked at her with a confused look now.

"Oh, umm, I said most definitely. She is our trusted friend after all." Paris lied with a fake smile. Laren didn't take hint of this and just smiled.

"Yeah!" She beamed.

"Wait, if no one lost and Lucette is here, does that mean Ginger got the prize?" Nathan thought aloud.

"You got that right." The host gave him an affirmative nod. "Though she was dangerously close to losing it all. If it weren't for Lucette she would have lost really." He looked towards the aforementioned with a slight grin. "Too bad you guys didn't get to see it. It was quite surprising to say the least." He chuckled lightly.

"Well where is she then? Why isn't she here as well?" Laren asked with a slight pout.

"Yeah...I've got a lot of things I want to talk her about as well." Paris added in with a faked smile.

"Hmph. Probably enjoying herself somewhere after running away with the prize." Leonard sneered in a low sounding tone with his arms crossed.

"Actually...you're not that far off, Jag." Chris mused him. "She's currently staying in a secret location deep in this forest until merge hits. And when I meant deep, I really meant deep." He further emphasized. "You guys are more than welcome to go and find her once today's challenge is over but you guys will be disqualified if none of you make it back here before the next challenge starts." He challenged them with a slight snicker. "Nah. Just kidding. I don't want another lawsuit filed under me." He started laughing for a bit. "Anyways." The host cleared his throat.

Skell got the signal and rolled his eyes. Spinning his chair around now, he started tapping away at the control panel until the large over-head screen came to life. Two ancient-looking books were shown on screen displayed side-by-side under distinctive styles. The book on the right had a thick, dark-purple cover heavily wrapped around with a chain and padlock. A faint blue glow was being emitted through the gaps in the chain. The book on the left though looked a lot older than the other. The cover was worn with slight tears on the edges. It was in a shade of light brown with bleached out spots to further emphasize its old age. Old, rotting twine held the book together by it's spine. No image was displayed on the front cover except for some faded out markings showing evidence of something was written on it before. Both held an unsettling aura between them showcasing the malicious purpose of these two texts.

"For today's challenge, all of you will be breaking all laws of nature and cross the gap between man and god." Chris exaggerated the last word to make it more dramatic. "A challenge that'll break all your morals. Question your faith and humanity. As well as enter the deep depths of religious taboo." A grim smile was planted on his face. "For today's challenge, you guys will be tasked in creating life through alchemy or dark arts."

"Creating life? Would it be easier if we just grab a girl instead and-" Kazuo was about to finish his sentence when Alice elbowed him hard on the gut. "Ugh...I'm not going to get a break am I?..."

"Well, you are breaking something at least." Chris remarked. "Anyways. The rules are pretty much simple. Just choose a book and perform whatever instructions given in these books until one team is able to create a functioning being with it's own consciousness. Provided that you guys have the knowledge to do so anyways." He said mockingly. "Since the dawn team won last challenge they get to choose which book they'll be using. So what will it be? Alchemy or Rituals?" The host asked them now. The mentioned team all faced each other for which they're going to choose.

"So what book are we going to use?" Laren asked her team with a curious look. "I don't have a clue on either one of them really." She pouted.

"Not like it would even matter. Since its not like anyone of us know either!" Leonard looked rather irritated with the choice.

"Well, not entirely so..." Nathan piped in. "I've read a lot of books and, well, you could say I skimmed through some regarding both..." He said looking rather embarrassed. "So I'm good with either choice."

"Hmm. That's interesting to note. So what do you suggest then?" Dylan asked him now. Nathan just started pondering for a bit.

"Well, from the little research I've done all I can say is that alchemy regarding life is still shrouded in theories and skeptics. While rituals are more or less anecdotal when it comes to success. The decision is also made difficult due to both not having any scientific evidence." Nathan explained with a slight frown. "So I'm not sure really."

"I see." Dylan nodded. "How about we try the alchemy one then?" He suggested

"I say we choose the ancient rituals one." Paris stepped. Dylan though, gave her a skeptic look.

"And what makes you say that?" He questioned the dancer.

"What other choice do you think we have? I'm not going to risk my chances with theories! And I'm sure everyone here feels the same." Paris argued with a sharp look. "And besides, none of us here are chemists."

"Fine. No need to get all rattled up now." Dylan said slightly aggravated. He turned away from his team now to face Chris. "Hey Chris! We've come to a conclusion!" He called out to him.

"What is it then?" The host asked.

Giving Paris a quick look, he answered. "We choose the book on rituals." Dylan said in a serious tone.

"I see." Chris nodded. "Well then, that leaves the alchemy book to the dusk team." Chris faced them with a slight smirk. "I hope you guys passed your chemistry classes for you guys are going to need it." He joked.

"C-chemistry? The school I go to hasn't th-thought me that yet..." Phoebe said meekly.

"Same here." Lucette added in with a sad look. "I grew up in an orphanage so my education was limited."

"Don't worry girls! I know a thing or two about chemistry!" Kazuo beamed. "You can count on me to get us through this!" He added in with a toothy grin.

"Please tell me we're not relying on Kazuo for this." Alice loathed the idea.

"Well, I'm not sure about chemistry but I do know how to make bombs so that's worth something!" Blake said to his team with a wide grin. His team just gave him worried looks after hearing it. "What?" He looked confused now.

"Why the fuck do you know how to make bombs for?!" Alice exclaimed.

"What? I use them for the pranks I pull! Stink and powder bombs don't come cheap you know?" Blake defended himself. "And besides, they're harmless." He assured. Alice just let out a deep sigh and massaged her temples.

"We're doomed." She looked defeated.

"H-how about you, Clint? C-can you do anything about it?" Phoebe looked up to ask Clint who was standing behind her. Clint just gave the doll faced girl a quick look to see her desperate plea before giving her a nod on response.

"I'll do what I can." He answered.

"Great! Now that things are finally settled its time we get things underway!" The host exclaimed. "Oh! And one more thing..." This caught everyone's attention. "Tonight is also going to be a double elimination!" He announced. Everyone was taken aback and shocked to hear this.

"Wait! What? What's with the sudden added risk?" Dylan asked, looking a bit surprised.

"I just got word from the producer last night that it needed to happen is all. All because the team count got reduced but not the player count due to yesterday's events. So a double elimination is needed in order to remedy this." Chris explained to them.

"How come you didn't tell me about this?" Skell looked a bit alarmed.

"Eh. Must've slipped my mind." Chris shrugged. "Anyways...Everyone. Time to get in your pods to get this party started!" He commanded them. All the remaining contestants got moving and entered the individual pods. With the contestants now all safely inside the pods, the camera started to slowly zoom in on the two hosts.

"I'm still not going in there to get my hands tainted with this mess." Skell said looking very serious about it.

"Fine. Suit yourself. Have fun boring yourself to death here." Chris said sternly before walking on away.

* * *

The scene shifting to inside the virtual world now showcased all the contestants inside a large, spacious tomb. Torches affixed on to the walls lit up the place but just barely. Beneath them is a faded red carpet rolled all the way towards the end of the tomb leading towards steps to a raised shrine. On top of it where the two books guarded on each side by two imposing suits of armour with their weapons on the ready.

The suit of armour on the right side guarding the book on rituals is in a deep shade of red. Thick shoulder padding with diamond shaped crests were attached to it. The elbows and knees of the suit were smaller diamond shaped as well. The chest piece is slightly puffed out and pointed with a small slope leading down the from the neck. The helm's face mask was flat and squared with a single T-shaped slit on the center. On it's right hand the suit held a poleaxe with a large frontal blade curving slightly at the bottom end to form hook while the back blade was smaller and pointed upwards.

On the other side of the shrine, guarding the book on alchemy, is a more feminine suit of armor radiating in a brilliant blue tone. The design was more elegant and slimer as well as being smaller in size. The helm had a more beak-like design with the chin and forehead being pointed forward. The face mask was a rounder with half ovals tilted slightly towards each other to give it a fierce look. On the suit's belt straddled on the left side is a sheathed blade. The handle is made of dark, durable wood with both the handle and pommel made of gold.

Everyone was awestruck and left to wonder while taking in all that was placed in-front of them.

"So are we supposed to just grab them and go?" Blake asked no one in particular.

"I more curious about the grand set-up really." Kazuo responded.

"Who do I have a sudden bad feeling about this?" Dylan looked a bit unease. Clint felt the same over on his side of the teams as he looked towards the shrine up ahead.

"It doesn't matter. Let's just get our book and get it over with." Leonard said sternly as he walked on forward.

"Umm...I-I think one of us should g-get our book as well." Phoebe said meekly as she watched Leonard walking off.

"I'll do it!" Kazuo hastily volunteered.

"No you don't!" Alice scoffed. "Knowing you you'll just do something random to the books!" She protested. "I'll do it!" She soon left them for the book. No one from her team decided to stop her.

After a short walk both Leonard and Alice made it to the bottom of the steps. The former pressed on ahead while the latter tailed him slightly behind. As the two made it to the shrine, they both attempted to reach for their own team's book but a sudden slight clanking caused Alice to hesitate.

"What's wrong with you?" Leonard questioned for he took notice. Alice gave him no mind and peered directly at the blue suit next to her. "Hmph. Whatever." He brushed her off and continued to reach for the ritual book. As Leonard grabbed hold of the book the clanking sound suddenly grew noticeable catching his attention.

"LEONARD! DUCK!" A male voice alerted him from behind.

"What?" Leonard looking beside him now saw the red suit of armour swinging it's large axe right at him. "Shit!" He managed to dodge under the attack get away from the shrine. This caused the blade to hit the wall in-front of him instead. Leonard turning around saw Nathan with his katana drawn standing behind him now.

Alice seeing this quickly drew out her dagger and turned towards the blue suit of armour. By doing so she was able to block an oncoming back-handed sword swing with the sheath still on. A loud metallic clang rang out for the sheath's sides were covered in metal. With the left hand holding on to the sheath, the blue suit pulled out the blade using it's right hand and went for a downward slash. Alice though managed to barely dodge out and roll out of the way.

The red suit easily pulled it's blade out of from the wall and went in for another swing using the smaller blade but Nathan was able to parry it with his katana. Although he managed to do so, the force of the swing was enough to get him off-balanced leaving him exposed. The red suit took this opportunity to kick him off and send him sliding down the steps. Nathan was left groaning in pain down on the bottom.

"The hell?!" Leonard clashed blades with the red suit of armour creating a loud clang that echoed out. "Ugh." He was soon struggling to maintain his stand.

"Someone do something!" Laren pleaded to her team.

"I'm on it!" Dylan drew out his sword and ran off to the side, vanishing into the shadows. As he approached from the side he quickly jumped in with his sword raised preparing for a strike.

The red suit of armour well anticipating this to happen twisted it's weapon causing it to hook on to Leonard's naginata. It then used Leonard's force to pull throw behind. By doing so the red suit used the momentum of it's action to swing the lower end of the poleaxe to swat Dylan away. Both Dylan and Leonard crashed into the shrine breaking it to pieces. It soon straightened out it's weapon and pounded the bottom on to the floor victoriously.

"Guys! A little help here!" Alice cried out to her team while desperately trying to defend against the blue armour's relentless swordplay with her dagger. Hugging tightly on to her chest was the book on alchemy. After a few more strokes her opponent managed to cut her on the left leg causing her to hiss in pain and drop down to one knee. "Damn..." She cursed.

With the blue suit of armour now having the upper hand, it placed the blade of it's sword on top of Alice's left shoulder close to her neck. Raising the sword up high again it was about to finally strike her down when an arrow suddenly pierced armour's wrist and knocking the blade right out of their hand. Both turning to where it came from saw Clint standing on the ready with another arrow drawn. His wolf was seen standing right behind him glaring menacingly at the suit of armour while letting out a low sounding growl. Seeing this, the suit jumped backwards towards it's blade before breaking off the arrow in it's wrist. The blue suit grabbed the blade and placed it back in it's sheath, readying for another slash.

"Hold still!" Lucette instructed Alice for she managed to get close from behind. She raised her staff and made the gem glow a green light that enveloped Alice. Her wound started to close with the pain quickly fading away.

"Took you guys...long enough..." Alice said in-between breaths. She took in a deep breath before standing up herself on her newly healed leg. She wobbled a bit but managed to balance herself.

"You should stay back and let the others take over for now. You need to rest." Lucette suggested, looking concerned for her.

"Hmph. Like hell I would! I'm not about to give in that easily!" Alice protested. She soon shoved the book onto Lucette's arms. "Here. Take this and get out of here. We'll call you if you're needed." She said coldly before rushing off towards the blue suit of armour, dagger in hand.

"Grrr. I'll show you who'll be needed!" Lucette alter spoke through the ring, sounding angered, causing the gem to glow bright. Lucette quickly covered up the ring with the palm of her hand and instantly turned to run the other way.

"No! Don't show yourself yet!" She pleaded in a hushed tone.

Back on over by the broken shrine, both Dylan and Leonard stood strong with their weapons raised against the red suit. Both were panting heavily but kept a steady stance. Behind the suit from the bottom of the steps Nathan stood on the ready as well. The red suit of armour just took on a defensive stance awaiting for either of them to make a move.

"Damn...he's tough..." Dylan said looking very much out of breath. "He already took on the three of us and still nothing!"

"Hmph. I'm not about to let this tin can get in my way!" Leonard roared with his eyes dead set on the suit. He then rushed in recklessly towards the opposition, weapon in hand.

"Leonard! Wait!" The gamer rushed in with him as well.

As Leonard got in close, he leapt forward and raised his naginata high to perform a powerful, crushing blow. The red suit of armour just easily blocked the attempt with it's weapon's shaft.

"Over here!" Dylan came in fast from the side with his large sword ready for a swing. Swinging wildly at the suit, the attack let out a loud clang for his opponent managed to block it as well by tipping the poleaxe downwards. Both Dylan and Leonard now were doing their hardest to overpower the red suit.

While the struggle continued, Nathan came in swiftly from behind with his katana raised over his head. Igniting his blade with his dark magic he sliced down on the suit from behind. "Hah!" He roared just before slicing down followed by a loud metallic clang. "What?!" Nathan was now left stunned when he saw his attack did absolutely nothing. Not even a scratch.

With all three attacks absorbed by the red suit of armour, it flicked it's weapon forward sending both Leonard and Dylan flying backwards and down the steps. Nathan tried to pull away now but the suit managed to catch his katana blade and pulled him in. He got tossed towards the wall feeling the wind getting knocked out of him before bouncing right off and landing hard on the ground. All three of them were downed once more.

Meanwhile, the blue suit of armour was excellently keeping both Alice and the wolf at bay with the sword and sheath. Not even Clint can get in a good shot for every arrow he shoots were either being dodged, blocked, or cut in midair. They kept on trying to press on to find an advantage but the suit wasn't easily letting up.

"Damn! This isn't working!" Alice whined as her jab got parried again by the sheath. The wolf tried to get in a lunge from behind but couldn't get close due to the sword keeping him out of range. Another arrow whiffed passed the suit and drove deep into the far wall behind. "Ah!" The sound of Alice's dagger bouncing and sliding away echoed out the for the suit managed to disarm arm her. It soon aimed the tip of the sword right at her and lunged. "Shit!" Alice managed to just barely dodge out of the way. With swift and agile movements, the blue suit of armour made a sudden twist in it's heel as it passed by and slammed Alice with the sheath, knocking her down with a single blow.

Gasps were heard coming from her team, as well as a feeling of shock as they watched her in her helpless state. Having no time to waste, Clint quickly dropped his bow and drew out his blades and charged. Steel clashed for both he and the suit locked blades against each other. The wolf now went in for a pounce now but the suit was a step ahead and fell on its back while grabbing onto Clint's arms. Essentially using Clint's forward momentum to throw him backwards and hitting a stone pillar, knocking him out, as well as dodging the wolf's attack. Getting up quickly, it lunged at the beast causing it to yelp before disappearing a flash of light.

"W-we need to do something!" Phoebe pleaded with Blake as they helplessly watch their teammates get beaten.

"I'm sorry, Phoebe, but we just can't. Not yet at least." The prankster turned her down with a shake of his head. "We need to protect this book and somehow get out of here. We can't win if all of us die!" He explained to her.

"B-but...c-can I at least send Savior over there?" Phoebe suggested with a sad look. Blake just shook his head no once more.

"We need to be at our best if the fight comes our way. Doing so will only exhaust you." Blake reasoned, feeling a built guilty by doing so.

"A-alright..." Phoebe hesitantly agreed. She continued to just helplessly watch them fight on. Stopping her urge to run in and help.

With both fronts having been easily taken care of by the pair of armour, both set out to finish them off. The hulking red suit of armour stood over the unconscious Nathan while the elegant blue suit stood over Alice in a similar state. The former raised it's weapon just above his victim's head while the latter pointed the blade on it's own target's neck. Both were about to finish them off when the two of them suddenly got stopped in their executions.

"I'm sorry but we really need that book." Paris said calmly for she was underneath the poleaxe's blade and blocked it with her own.

Meanwhile, a metallic crashing was heard over on the other side. The camera panning towards it showed a stone pillar had erupted from the ground, sending the blue suit of armour sending it flying over to the back wall.

"I was supposed to be here earlier but you look like you were having too much fun beating them up." Kazuo chuckled softly as he held his spell book with one hand. The blue suit of armour just simply stood up like nothing happened and accepted his challenge.

Both suits of armour soon changed their course of action and decided to take on their new opponents.

The red suit of armour raised it's weapon high and swing it back down. Paris managed to easily side step it though quick foot work leaving the suit now exposed. Pressing with her advantage, she lunged her rapier forward with the tip aimed at the gap in it's mask. To her surprise nothing was inside the red suit for the tip just hit the back of the helm and popped it right off. The sound of the helmet bouncing and rolling echoed all through out.

"What?" The dancer tried to pull her now exposed arm away but got grabbed and raised up high "Ah!" She was then slammed hard on to the stone floor leaving her racked in pain.

Happening at the same over on the lower ground, Kazuo was doing his best to keep the blue suit of armour and him in parity. He let loose all his spells in a variety of ways but with each attempt of him getting struck down his opponent manages to get closer and closer.

"Ha!" Kazuo swept his right arm towards the left to cast a torrent of frozen spikes to erupt from the suit's left. His opponent managed to roll away before and could hit. "Have another!" The former swiped his right arm towards the right now, casting the same spell creating stone spikes coming from the latter's right. The suit though was able to defend against it using it's blade and sheath. With only a straight path leading towards Kazuo left, the blue suit charged at him with the sword drawn. "This was easier than I thought." He said from under his breath with a slight grin.

As the suit was coming in fast and close, brightly glowing crystal spikes suddenly erupted right in-front of it causing it to stop and slide in it's path. Soon another set of spikes erupted right behind it, trapping the suit in a ring of spikes.

"Hmph. Good-bye." Kazuo flicked his fingers causing a roaring pillar of flames to erupt from underneath the suit and consuming it in fire. "Hmm, that was easy." Thinking that the fight is now over, he turned around started walking towards his team. With him caught unaware now, the suit emerged jumping out of the flames and landing on his back. The hot metal boots singed away the cloth underneath and started burning away at Kazuo's back. Kazuo's agonizing scream filled the tomb as the suit of armour pressed down harder, burning his now exposed flesh even more in attempt to execute him that way.

"Ah! M-make it stop!" Phoebe begged, completely terrified from what she's witnessing. She was sitting on the ground with her head tucked in between her knees and chest. Her arms over her head and ears in attempt to block of the screaming.

Over back on top of the platform, the red suit of armour was down on to one knee and raised Paris up with her hair. The dancer was doing her best to set herself free but was little to no use. She made attempts reaching for her blade that was merely inches away from her fingers but couldn't.

"Ah! Let go!" Paris said through gritted teeth as she tried to pull her hair loose while at the same time pounding on the metal forearm. She soon stopped, breathing in heavily, for the grip was too strong and was just draining all her energy. Seconds later her eyes soon met with her own reflection for the poleaxe's large blade was now in-front of her. The suit held the weapon by it's neck, raising it high, preparing for the execution.

"Paris! No!" Laren helplessly watched on for she knew she can't do anything to intervene. As the pair of living suit's of armour were about close to finishing of their opponents, a voice coming from behind the still standing contestants suddenly rant out, commanding them to stop.

"Hold it! That's about enough." The voice command. Both followed their command and withdrew themselves and their weapons. Paris got dropped back on to the floor, trying to muster up what remained of her strength, while Kazuo was trying to finally catch his breath. The red suit slung it's weapon over it's shoulders while the blue suit returned it inside it's sheath and strapped it back on it's waist. Both soon walked towards their original positions on the platform. The remaining conscious contestants then looked towards where it came from only to see Chris walking out of the shadows behind them. "I see you all met the guardian knights?" He said with a smirk.

"Chris? Why are you here? And what the hell is going on?" Blake was quick to question him as the host approached.

"Yeah. It was horrifying! All of them weren't even able to land a scratch on them." Laren said sadly as she gave her unconscious teammates a quick glance back.

"Well, to answer your first question, I'm here to further explain the challenge. As for the second, the pair was just doing their job in protecting the books from being stolen is all." The host answered.

"Stolen?...Why would we need to *cough* steal them for?...You told us to take one!..." Paris confronted Chris about it as she did her best to limp her way towards them. Laren, seeing her teammate in bad shape, quickly rushed to her aid and placed one of Paris's arms over her shoulder. Chris though, just wagged a finger at her with a smug look.

"Correction. I told you to choose one." The host said in a slightly mocking tone. "I never said anything about getting one." He smirked. "I was supposed to join you guys here and give more added details to the challenge and personally hand the books over to avoid this whole mess but seeing you guys struggle would make for an interesting show so why stop it?" He let out a soft chuckle. Paris wanted to lash out at him but her aching body won't let her, only letting out a snarl. "Anyways, gather the others and get them back up standing. I'll be needing everyone's full attention for this." He grinned.

After a short while the fallen contestants had already gotten back up and staying right beside their teams. Paris was doing her best to heal up her team with her dance while Lucette was doing the same with her staff. Soon enough, they were all feeling better and have gathered right in-front of him.

"So, are you all ready to actually begin the challenge?" Chris asked them with a slight snicker. No one answered him and received harsh stares from some of them. "Hmm. Welcoming." He let out a short laugh. "Anyways, here's your actual instructions for the challenge." Chris cleared his throat now. "As all of you know, both teams were tasked with creating life with these two books. Right? Well, that was just the more 'basic' explanation of the challenge. The actual challenge is to actually replicate or summon a soul and fuse them into these sets of armour." He gestured to both suits standing motionlessly behind him in their original position. "Once that's over you guys will have to simply bring them back here. Simple!" He ended his explanation with a wide grin.

"Bring them back? Wouldn't that mean we would have to travel somewhere?" Alice complained. "After making us fight for no reason you still expect us to travel!" She raised her voice at him.

"Yes. Any problems with it? Wait! Don't answer that. I think I already know your answer." Chris started to laugh at her. Alice just kept a sharp glare at him while letting out a low growl. "Anyways..." He snapped his fingers. The tomb started suddenly shaking causing some small debris to fall down right above them. Moments later two doorways appeared behind where the two suits of armour stood. "Both teams will be following these two down these hallways for they will lead you to where you all will be performing the challenge. The dusk team will follow the blue suit while the dawn team will follow the red suit." He now explained. "Also, dawn team, here's your book." Chris tossed the book towards them. Dylan fumbled in catching the book. "Any questions."

"I-Is it dark in there?" Phoebe meekly asked with her right hand slightly raised.

"Yes. And full of spiders and cobwebs as well." The host plainly answered. Phoebe was now visibly shaking at the thought. "Anyone else with an actual question?" No one bothered to ask. "Alrighty then. You may all begin." He gestured at both suits to walk down the halls. Both nodded and started to walk down the path. The two teams followed them shortly after. Some of them struggled to enter but was convinced to do so otherwise. "This is going to be a lot of fun." Chris chuckled with slight grin.

* * *

Inside the narrow hall the place was nearly pitch dark. The contestants could barely see anything that was right in-front of them. All of them were walking quietly further inside with only the sounds of their foot steps and the suit of armour's metallic clanging can be heard echoing all around.

"A-are w-we almost th-there?" Phoebe asked, stuttering so much that it was almost un-cohesive. "Ah!" She heard something crumble which caused her to freak out.

"Don't w-worry, Phoebe. As long as you don't let go of my hand things will be alright. Right?" Lucette assured her but sounded unsure of herself.

"Yeah. It'll be a piece a cake! Its only darkness after all!" Blake assured for them. "I mean just look, or hear rather, at Clint! He's pretty calm about this whole ordeal!" He swung his hand in attempt of patting him but he accidentally smacked someone at the back of the head by mistake.

"Hey! Watch it!" Alice growled at him.

"Sorry! I thought Clint was still walking next to me!" The prankster explained himself.

"I'm in-front of you." Clint responded to Blake.

"You know, this whole vision problem would be fixed if I use my magic!" Kazuo suggested with quite the enthusiasm in his tone.

"Yeah. Sounds like a good- No." Alice said back, sounded serious.

"Hey guys. I think I see something up ahead!" Lucette pointed out to her team.

* * *

"Man...that was a long walk." Nathan looked beat as he followed the red suit inside a dimly lit room.

"Hmph...that was nothing..." Leonard said back as he entered right after, though looking winded as well.

"Took you guys long enough. I thought you guys would never get here." Dylan said with a smug look with both arms crossed as he stood in the center of the room. Standing behind him was an old statue of a woman wearing a robe with its hood down standing valiantly tall.

"What do you mean? How'd you get here before us?" Leonard snapped at him.

"Cool it, big guy. Are you forgetting about my capabilities? If so then you better watch you're back once merge hits, since you might never know what might be creeping." Dylan replied with a sharp stare. "If you know, you ever get to reach it." He laughed. Leonard, not taking this lightly, decided to stomp on towards him and stared him down.

"You tryin' to tick me off? Runt!" He said in a low, menacing tone.

"Hmph. Its not like you can take me on." Dylan scoffed. Both just glared deeply into each other.

"Enough! Both of you. Otherwise I'll get both of you voted out!" Paris decided to intervene. "Remember, its double elimination tonight. If we lose this even a single vote can take you out." She threatened them.

Both boys stood their in silence for a few moments before Leonard finally stood down. "Fine." He stepped away from Dylan now. "Don't you think for a second that this is over." He said before heading back the way they came. On the way he crossed paths with Laren who was the last one to get inside the room.

"Oh, hey Leonard! Uhh, where you going?" She looked confused as she watched him slowly fade into the dark halls.

"None of your business!" Leonard answered with his voice echoing down.

"Okay..." Laren trailed off as she watched him disappear down the dark hall. She turned towards her team and ask them but her attention was suddenly caught by something else. "Is that a pentagram you guys are standing on?"

(Confessional)

Dylan: Hmph. I say good riddance! If that's how he wants to go down then so be it! Only thing I have left to worry about is not getting dragged down with him. Because its bright as day on whose he voting for if we lose. I wonder how I can get out of this?

Leonard: If I'm going down I might as well drag that son of a bitch with me! This one for sure won't fail me since, like what Paris said, tonight's going to be a double.

Paris: Those two knuckle heads! If only I wasn't stuck with just one vote I would've voted for both of them! *takes a deep breath* Don't lose it now, Paris, we can still win this. Alchemy looks like it'll be harder than rituals so we still have a chance.

Laren: Umm, am I missing something? Why did Leonard leave and everyone became so quiet all of a sudden? And why was everyone standing in the middle of a pentagram like that!? Man...if only I didn't decided to take a break I wouldn't be so lost.

(End confessional)

Everyone from the team, except Leonard, has finally calmed down and had gathered around the pentagram. Peculiar ancient writings were written along it's outer ring with a circle on each star point. All of them were scattered about in the room in trying to figure out what all of this could possibly mean.

"Dammit! I couldn't make heads or tails of what's written on this book!" Dylan complained while sitting in a corner of the room. The ancient book lay flat right in-front of him with the pages opened.

"Same here." Nathan added in with a sad look. He was leaning on the wall next to Dylan with both arms crossed. "I can't even figure out what language this book was written in as well. Latin, perhaps?" He guessed.

"Well whatever it is, we sure ain't figuring it out anytime soon!" Dylan slammed the book shut. Some bits of dust got blown away afterwards. "How was Chris even able to make something like this anyways? Knowing him, I doubt he could've even thought up anything as intricate as this thing!" He started to question while starring at the front cover.

"Maybe Skell did?" Nathan took a guess. "He looks like the type of guy that would be dealing in this sort of stuff. He has tribal tattoos on him so who knows?" He shrugged.

"I doubt it though." The gamer debuted. "He seemed like he wasn't all into this challenge since Chris was the one who explained everything rather than Skell." He explained.

"Hey guys! Get over here! We need you to see something!" Paris suddenly called them over from the other side of the room. Both boys gave each other perplexed looks before heading over towards her. Walking over they saw Laren and Paris standing on the right side of the statue.

"You two need us for something?" Dylan asked both of them.

"Yeah. I need both of you to take a look back here and tell me what you think." Paris gestured towards the back of the statue. Dylan, looking a bit confused, moved to where Paris was standing and took a peak at the back of the statue. He then noticed two rusted handles on the back of the statue. Nathan did the same and saw what Dylan saw as well.

"Uhh, why do you need to show us this for?" Dylan gave the dancer a skeptic look.

"You're the pro gamer here right? Surely you should know what something like that means. Right?" Paris crossed her arms at him.

"What is that supposed to do with anything?!" The former argued. The latter just looked disappointed in him and shook her head.

"How about you, Nathan? You know what to do here?" She asked the other boy instead.

"I'm guessing you want us to find a way to push this onto the symbol?" Nathan answered. Paris just let out a soft smile.

"Good! Glad to see someone got it." Paris replied with a smug look aimed towards the gamer. Dylan wasn't all to amused by this at all. "Now that's settled..." She trailed off and moved aside. "Get to it!" She chuckled now. "Come on, Laren, let's give the guys some space."

"Umm, okay." Laren agreed but sounded a bit unsure with herself. With both girls out of the way, both boys soon went to work. Both of them could only manage to insert one arm in from the back of the statue.

"Ugh...she could've just said so..." Dylan uttered irritably as he tried to push. He started groaning in he process.

"Well, umm, don't let it get to you I guess..." Nathan said to him while doing the same thing. After a short while both of them stopped with exhausted looks for the statue wouldn't even budge.

"Damn...this is harder than it looks..." Dylan said while panting.

"If only Leonard were here. He would've been able to push this." Nathan commented on their endeavor.

"We don't need him." Dylan scoffed. "We just need to find a different way for this thing to move." He placed a hand on his chin in thought. "Hmmm..."

While Dylan was deep in his thoughts, Nathan started to look around the room to see if he could find anything useful. He soon spotted the red suit of armour just standing idly by in one corner. An idea soon came to him.

"What if we get that suit to move it? Maybe it can get this heavy statue to budge." He suggested.

"Hmm, maybe..." Dylan trailed off, thinking it might just work. He gave the armour a quick stare before walking towards the red suit. "Hey! Move that statue on to the circle!" He commanded the suit. The suit just stood there motionless. "Worth the shot I guess?" He shook his head and was about to walk back away from the suit when the sound of metal clinking caught his attention. Suddenly, he felt the suit brush of his shoulder and walked towards the statue. It soon started pushing the statue from behind and was slowly moving it towards the circle. "Hmm, that was easy." He thought to himself.

The moment the statue got properly placed on the middle of the pentagram on the floor the lines and symbols soon started to emit a light-blue glow. The sound of stone grinding against one another started to fill the room for the arms of the statue started to move and cupped them together as if begging for something. Everyone in the room were left mind-boggled from what just happened.

"Uhh, guys? You need to see this!" Laren called out to all of them. Everyone looking towards her saw the book that was left on the ground suddenly floating with the pages turning on their own. The faded marks on the book's cover started glowing as well, mirroring the same symbol that was on the ground. After a short while, the book started floating towards the statue and placed itself on top of its hands. The statue soon started cracking with lights escaping from the cracks.

"Is this supposed to be a good thing?" Paris asked both boys. She looked a bit paranoid about what's happening.

"We better hope so..." Dylan answered.

* * *

Back on over to the dawn team, the room they were all in was similar to that of the other team's except for a few things. Instead of a statue placed in the back of the room, it was a small furnace with the flames glowing steadily behind the metal bars. Tables were placed on each side of the furnace with various test tubes and glasses containing liquids, powders, and other materials inside of them. Lastly, the sigil marked on to the floor contained an encircled triangle with smaller circles containing odd symbols each as well as one more in the center of the triangle.

Kazuo, standing in-front of one of the tables, held the alchemy book in one hand and mixing the peculiar items into one single flask. Phoebe was also standing next to him, all the while shaking in fear. His other teammates were all quietly watching him with looks of both concern and distrust as he continued on with the entire process.

"Y-you sure you w-want me to help?" The latter said shakily all the while starring at the former's concoction.

"Yes!" Kazuo happily replied. "Now hurry up and pass me that vile." He pointed towards a glass filled with blue liquid.

"O-okay..." Phoebe handed him the glass in which Kazuo quickly poured in. "Eek!" She shrieked when the concoction started to fizzle.

"I still don't think this is a good idea." Alice said with both arms crossed while keeping a steady glare at Kazuo. "I don't trust him with whatever he's doing with those chemicals." She pointed out.

"What choice do we have? He's the only one that can read whatever is written on that book." Blake replied, looking a bit uneasy with all this. Alice let out a deep sigh in response.

"All because that spell book of his is written in the same way." She shook her head low. Alice then gave the symbol on the floor a quick look. "And what is it with this symbol anyways?" She questioned.

"It's a transmutation circle." Clint answered her. "Its common symbolism used in alchemy. With different markings serving different purposes." He explained.

"How come you know so much about these little details, Clint?" Lucette curiously asked.

"I've played a lot of RPGs. Stuff like these are, more or less, present in most." He answered. "Learning about them only comes natural." Clint added in.

"If you know a lot about these sort of things then how come you're not the one doing whatever he's doing?" Alice pointed a finger towards Kazuo.

"I just recognize them. I don't meddle with them." Clint calmly answered.

"Eureka! I did it!" Everyone heard Kazuo exclaim. Looking towards him, everyone saw the flask filled with a blood-red liquid he held in his hand. A wide grin was planted on his face as he held it up for everyone to see. The liquid looked to be very viscous and thick due to the way it sloshed around in the flask.

"What is that?" Alice cautiously asked as she eyed the substance.

"This, my dear Alice, is called a red liquid!" Kazuo proudly answered. Everyone looked to be dumbfounded by his answer. "What? Its actually called that in the book!"

"Please don't tell me you spent time making whatever that is just because of it's name." Alice looked unamused with him. Kazuo didn't say anything but just kept up his grin. "Why am I not surprised..." She sighed deeply.

"Don't worry about it because you're in luck! It just so happens that this red liquid is actually a mini Philosopher's stone!" Kazuo explained.

"A Philosopher's stone? What's that?" Lucette looked confused.

"A Philosopher's stone is the most powerful item in all of alchemy due to it being able to amplify the capabilities of an alchemist." Clint instantly answered. "The stone is also able to bypass the absolute law of alchemy being equivalent exchange where the alchemist has to give something back equaling to the amount you used." He added in.

"If that's the case then why not just make the actual thing instead of a weaker version?" Blake questioned.

"That's because its not in here. It says in the book that the recipe to create the actual thing has long been forgotten as well as lost in history." Kazuo explained. "Hence why this thing here is the weaker version since it was made from what was still known." He added.

"Is that the reason why its all liquid-y instead of being a stone?" Lucette curiously asked.

"I don't know. I'm not the person who wrote this." Kazuo shrugged. "All I know its not yet finished. This thing still needs to be crystalized."

"Then what are you waiting for then? Get to it then!" Alice looked frustrated with him.

"Don't worry I'm already on it!" Kazuo answered. He suddenly raised the flask above his head and was about to drink it but Alice suddenly grabbed his arm and stopped him. Everyone else were surprised to see what he had planned.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing?!" She looked shocked.

"Drinking it?" Kazuo answered slowly.

"Whatever the fuck for?!" Alice snapped at him.

"Well it says here in order for it to crystalize it needs to be introduced to a human body. Because its the only way for it to merge with the host's soul." The former explained.

"You can't be serious." The latter placed both of her hands on her hips. Alice kept a steady cold stare at him.

"I am! Watch!" Kazuo attempted to drink it again but was stopped when Alice quickly snatched the flask away from him.

"Give me that!" Alice said while taking the flask from his hand. She gave the viscous dark liquid a quick once over before looking back towards her teammate. "Let's say I believe in all this. Why does it have to be you of all people to drink whatever this thing is? You're the only one who bloody knows how to read that damn book!" She exclaimed.

"Hmm, you do have a point." Kazuo nodded in agreement. "Then that only means one thing!" He paused and turned towards Phoebe. The doll faced girl just gulped for what's to come. "Phoebe. As my assistant you are automatically chosen to be my test subject!" He declared.

"W-what!?" Phoebe looked shocked.

"Hold on, Kazuo. You can't be serious!" Blake objected.

"Yeah! I don't think its a good idea either!" Lucette backed him up.

"Oh please...stop sucking up to him. He clearly has other plans." Lucette alter muttered from her ring in which Lucette immediately hid her hand behind her back before anyone could notice.

"Of course I am! It just makes perfect sense it all!" Kazuo replied. "Unless you or anybody else wants to take her place instead?" He smirked.

"Well I...umm..." The prankster didn't know what else to say. Silence filled the room for no one wanted to say something either.

"That settles it then! Phoebe, bottoms up!" Kazuo raised the flask in front of Phoebe. The red liquid swirling about as he did. She looked at it in horror while at the same time gazing at her own distorted reflection. Taking in a heavy gulp, Phoebe took the flask from Kazuo's hand and held it with a shaken grip. She gave her team one last glance only to be met with silent contemplations. Closing her eyes she slowly raised the glass up to her lips and was about to take in the first drop when someone suddenly called out.

"Wait! I'll do it!" Clint calmly stepped forward. Everyone in the room looked surprised at him, especially Phoebe. Kazuo though, looked as if he was expecting this to happen.

"Hmm, how am I not surprised?" Kazuo lightly chuckled. "You've been sticking up for her lately. I wonder why?" He grinned slightly at him. He then took the flask from Phoebe's hands and passed it on to Clint. "Well, hurry up now! We don't have all day."

Clint seeing the flask now in his hands just gave Kazuo a cold stare knowing full well now that he had set him up. Seeing as though there is no backing out of this now, he quickly drank everything down to its final drop. Soon the flask was now empty, leaving an empty glass in his hands. For a moment, nothing seems to be happening but after a short while he felt a sudden convulsion in his stomach causing him to drop down on to both knees. He then felt a sharp pain in his chest as he started to cough out blood.

"C-Clint!" Phoebe quickly knelt down next to him and placed an arm on his back. "Ah!" Red sparks suddenly pulsed out as soon as she touched him. His body was slowly breaking down and dissolving away. "W-what's happening to him?" She asked, looking quite horrified.

"Oh its just his soul binding with the stone that is slowly crystalizing inside of him." Kazuo casually explained. "It won't take long now." He chuckled a bit.

After a short wait, the red sparks soon started crackling from the ground as well as surging up and down Clint's body. His entire body emitting a bright red light with each passing flick. His body soon started to hasten the pace in breaking down and fading away bit by bit. Although he had a look of agony in his face throughout the process he didn't make a sound and just hung on strong with teeth gritted.

"Clint..." Phoebe quietly said as she helplessly watched him in painful agony. With nothing but a faint trace of what used to be his lower half and arms, Clint gave her one last quick look before completely vanishing into thin air. As the last bits of him vanished, a blood red crystal was the only thing left in his place. It was small and looked rigid and sharp, but it let out a bright glow near it's core that shined out bright. Everyone was left speechless for different reasons as they all stood there. After a short while, Kazuo soon picked up the crystal and raised it up in-front of him.

"Hmm...so this is what a fraction of a philosopher's stone looks like huh? Quite small don't you guys think?" Kazuo lightly chuckled to himself. "Oh well, only thing left to do is to call upon a soul. Now, where's that book?" He went back towards the tables and started skimming through each page. "Here we go, the spell I found earlier." He pointed out. "Can someone get that suit of armour to stand on the circle?" Kazuo asked from his team. After a brief silence, Blake stepped up.

"I'm on it." He said before walking off. Seconds later he was able to guide the blue suit of armour to stand on top of the circle.

"Good. Now, help me get this breast plate off." Kazuo asked of him. Both of them soon managed to remove the front half of the suit's upper armour. The inside of the suit was just as a brilliant shade of blue as the rest of it were. "Okay. Now for the fun part." He grinned. He then suddenly brought out his golden sword and suddenly slit the palm of his left hand. Gasps was heard from his team as they watched his hand quickly drip blood down onto the stone floor.

"W-why did you do that for!?" Lucette looker shocked as she watched him cut his hand open.

"Just a little...pre-requisite is all." Kazuo winced for he felt the sharp sting on his hand. "A blood pact is needed to perform this rite." He added while still gritting his teeth. His hand felt cold as blood continues to drip. He then started to draw a small spell circle similar to the larger circle on the inside of the suit of armour. The circle on the floor started to glow as soon as Kazuo finished. Both circles started to react with one another causing the smaller circle to violently shoot out black sparks hitting Kazuo by the hand to allow it to travel down his entire body. The tips of his fingers soon started to breakdown into smaller fragments that were being absorbed by the bloody circle.

"So this is equivalent exchange huh?" He grimly noted to himself as he watched his hand slowly breakdown. "Well, good thing I have this!" He held the stone with his right hand in-front of him and gripped it tightly. A red light started seeping through his fingers and soon his hand started crackling with red sparks. He pressed the stone on to blood circle causing more sparks to shoot out. The suit of armour started convulsing violently as waves of red electricity flowed through it.

"Eek!" Phoebe shrieked as a bolt landed right in-front of her. Everyone else remained to silently look on as the light in Kazuo's hand started to get increasingly brighter.

"I suggest you protect yourself. Now!" Lucette alter quietly prompted for Lucette to do.

"Wh-what?" Lucette gave her ring a confused look.

"For the love of...Everyone get down! NOW!" Her alter shouted causing the ring to glow bright. The others didn't take notice of the glow but heard what she said. An ear-deafening explosion suddenly occurred from where Kazuo stood and bathed the entire room in a blinding light. As the light died down only the blue suit of armour was left standing while everything else was completely shattered. Blake, Alice, and Phoebe laid lying flat on the ground except for Lucette who was encased in box with her eyes closed and arms shielding her. Kazuo though was nowhere to be seen.

"Huh? What happened?" Lucette looked around to see the mess everywhere. She soon noticed the others have fainted. "Oh my god! Are you guys alright!?" She attempted to run towards Phoebe but only then she noticed the barrier protecting her. "Huh?"

"Don't worry. They'll be fine. The blast wasn't strong enough to instantly annihilate them." Lucette alter responded plainly as she appeared inside the box with her. "Well, except for Kazuo. He took the brunt of it all." She added.

"What caused all this to happen?" Lucette now asked, looking quite worried.

"Its called magical rebound. Kazuo exerted way too much energy on that tiny stone of his causing it to shatter and expel the same amount." The latter answered simply. "You're lucky that I'm around. Otherwise you would've suffered as much as they did." She pointed out in a mocking tone. "I tried to warn them in your place but oh well." She shrugged to herself with a smug look on her face.

"Why only me though? Why couldn't you have just stopped the blast instead?" The former continued on to question her.

"Easy. I don't care about them. All I care about is my own survival." Lucette alter answered in a serious tone.

"If you didn't care about them then why did warn them?" Lucette confronted her about it.

"Listen, kid. I-" She was about to say something back when the sound of sparks crackling caught their attention. Looking towards the blue suit of armour they noticed the sparks coming from the blood drawn symbol. The sparks continued on flow down the suit for a brief moment before finally coming to a halt. Nothing came after causing silence between both girls. After a short moment, the suit started to move on its own. It lifted up both its arms and proceeded to twist and turn them as if it was trying to inspect them. It took notice of the surroundings but quickly bolted and knelt down towards the downed Phoebe on the other side of the room.

"Wh-what is it doing?" Lucette asked in a hushed tone as they watched the suit of armour examining itself. Her double didn't say anything but just stepped out of the box they were in.

"Stay here." She sternly said. She then flicked her fingers causing the glass to glimmer. "This barrier will protect you from being seen but not heard so I suggest you zip it." R. Lucette harshly added.

"But I-" Lucette cut herself off once her reflection gave her threatening glance.

"Good. I'll be back." Lucette alter proceeded to walk towards the suit of armour. The suit hearing her footsteps instantly raised it's head to face her.

"Lucette? What happened here?" The suit asked her in a familiar male voice but sounded echoed.

"Who are you?" She confronted the suit with a serious look.

"It's me. Clint." The suit answered. Lucette alter though looked rather skeptical.

"Clint? But he died moments ago? How do you expect me to believe that?" She looked at the suit with suspicion.

"I don't know. I'm not even sure how I was brought back here either. Last thing I remembered was fainting then I'm now suddenly here with this cold and empty feeling." Clint reasoned. "But you have to believe me. If I was someone else then I wouldn't be kneeling down next to Phoebe." He added.

"Fine. I'll give you that." Lucette alter calmed herself down. "As for how you came back, all I can say is Kazuo was successful in fusing a soul into that suit. In this case, your soul." She cleared things up.

"I see. That makes sense. Where is he though? I don't see him around here." Clint asked as he surveyed the ruined room.

"He died in the explosion that caused this mess." She answered bluntly. "Anyways, now that you're here, let's worry about them later and show you off to that damn host so that we can get this challenge finally over with." Lucette alter loathed at the mention of Chris. "I'm sure they'll get up eventually." She plainly added. No response came from Clint for he just stood there in ominous silence facing towards her. "Hey. Am I getting through that new tin can of yours?" She leaned forward with her hands on her hips. "I said let's go!"

"Tell me this, 'Lucette', how come you're the only one unscathed? And why are you acting so...differently?" Clint questioned her with a hint of suspicion in his voice. The reflection felt pressured now for she had over stepped in pretending to be Lucette. "Well?" Clint placed a hand over his new sword. Lucette alter still couldn't say anything.

"Nooo..." Lucette quietly whimpered inside her box as she continued on to helplessly watch.

"Well, umm, I...You know what? Fuck this!" Lucette alter raised her left arm forward, palms wide open and pointed towards Clint. Her hand started let out a bright flash of light. Clint immediately drew out his sword in attempt to cut her down but suddenly froze in place with the sword raised. Clint's armour was notably shaking showing signs of resistance but was no use. A thin veil of light was revealed to be the reason why he had stopped in place. She let out a deep sigh and turned towards Lucette who was sitting on the ground with her knees tucked in and eyes covered by her hands. "You can wake up now."

"Huh?" Lucette uncovered her eyes and soon noticed Clint frozen in place. "Wh-what did you do to him?" She hesitantly asked.

"I used my magic to take control over his body, or armour more rather." Lucette alter answered. "It was easy as well since he's all armour." She boasted. "Anyways, he's under your control now so get him out of here." She waved her hand causing the box to vanish and reveal her to Clint.

"Lucette!? What's going on here? Who's she?" Clint growled at her. He still struggled to break free but still wasn't able to.

"Oh right. Forgot he could still talk." Lucette alter said flatly. "To bad you don't have an actual mouth otherwise I could've solved that little problem." She chuckled lightly to herself. "Either way, you'll be in full control over him so let's get him out of here. I have a feeling that the other team is about as ready as we are." She said before fading back into Lucette's ring. The jewel on top just kept on shining bright even after she had left.

"I'm sorry about all this. I'll explain everything on the way out." Lucette looked quite ashamed of herself as she walked out of the room.

"Hmph. You better." Clint replied as his metal body followed suit.

* * *

The remaining dawn team members had all gathered around the center of the room, surrounding a bright, radiant light. The source of the bright light was a radiant female figure with long hair made purely of light that seems to be floating on it's own. Her face was barely visible but looked quite lax. The contestants though, looked to be heavily deep in thought for something was troubling them.

"So offering a tribute is really the only way for this to work huh?" Dylan felt quite overwhelmed by the thought.

"That is correct, but not just any offering. It has something of significant value and containing immense magical power." The figure monotonously answered.

"Est was it? I thought a divine goddess is supposed to be kind and benevolent? How come you are asking so much of us?" Laren sadly pleaded with her.

"That may be true but nothing comes without a price. Its just how things go." Est answered her in the same tone.

"Then tell us what we should offer then!" Paris demanded from her.

"That is for you to decide and for me to judge." The goddess apathetically answered.

"Hmph. So much for being a kind goddess." The dancer muttered under her breath. Est noticed this but didn't care for much.

"Can we offer more than just one in order to compensate for the requirement?" Nathan asked.

"You may but it may not guarantee that it would be enough." Est plainly answered him. This caused the entire team to feel even more overwhelmed.

"So what now? Do we all offer an item each?" Nathan looked towards his group.

"I say its worth the shot. If we can't solve this with quality we might as well use quantity." Dylan reasoned.

"*sigh* Fine. If this ends up failing we just ended up losing items for no reason." Paris un-eagerly disagreed.

"An item from each of us? But I don't have anything on me to give. I haven't found anything for me yet." Laren felt ashamed.

"You have that necklace of yours." Dylan pointed towards the necklace around her neck. "Why don't you offer that instead?" He suggested. Laren defensively grabbed hold of her necklace and pressed it close to her chest.

"I'm sorry but I can't offer this. This necklace means way too much for me." She reasoned out. "I'm essentially useless without it." This caught Est's interest but was subtle about it for no one to notice.

"Well you can't just decide not to give up anything. We need to win this if we want to keep going!" Paris urged her. "Come on, think about it. If we win this challenge we can easily win the next one since the other team will be losing two players. That is easily a better trade-off!" She enticed her. "And besides, Chris might be giving away another item for the winners. You can have that all for yourself if we win." She added.

"Hmm...alright. If it means that we'll win than I guess I won't mind giving this up." Laren hesitantly said as she removed her necklace. Est took note of this.

"Have all of you decided on what to give?" The goddess asked them in a serene tone. Everyone nodded in agreement. Everyone, except Laren, brought out the different items they had obtained throughout their stay. "Alright. Let's start with you." Est pointed towards Laren. Laren was shocked from seeing this.

"M-me? A-alright." She stammered. Laren slowly walked forward with her necklace in hand. She presented it to Est in which she accepted.

"Hmm, what a beautiful necklace. It looks simple yet elegant." Est commented on it. She circled her thumb on the gem piece and felt the magic coursing through it. "And holds a lot of power as well." She noted. The necklace started to glow bright and quickly vanished. Laren no longer felt the magic power emitted by her necklace. "Alright. This is enough. I can begin the rite now." She said to them. Everyone was surprised to hear this.

"What!? If all this time you wanted the necklace how you didn't you just said so?" Paris complained to her.

The goddess aptly ignored her and closed her eyes. With cupped hands she soon started to chant in an unrecognizable language in a hushed tone. The radiant light shrouding her figure started to glow even brighter the moment she began. Gathering in the palm of her hands were small particles of energy that slowly formed into a small sphere. As more energy particles gathered, the sphere slowly grew bigger until it was the size of a tennis ball. Her chanting soon stopped causing the flow of energy to cease, stopping the sphere's growth from getting any further. Everyone just looked awe struck at the small creation Est had made out of thin air.

"It is done." She told them in a calm manner. "Now. Where's that suit of armour?" Est now asked. Everyone stepped aside to let the hulking red suit walk towards her. "Hmm, what expert craftsmanship." She commented. "Too bad that snake of a host had you corrupted." She shook her head solemnly. "Don't worry. I'll fix you." Circling a finger on the suit's chest piece caused it get enveloped in a thin veil of light. The light soon shattered causing the suit to suddenly go limp. "Here." Est pressed the small sphere on to it's chest allowing it to slowly phase through. With the orb now inside it didn't take long before it took over. The gaps on the suit started to glow and the eye holes lit up. It was now evident that Est had given the suit life for it stood up tall once more and looked up towards the goddess in-front of it.

"My mistress." The suit spoke in a deep voice as it bowed down on to one knee. The dawn team was left speechless.

"Rise." Est ordered the suit. The suit obediently followed her orders and stood up.

"What are your orders?" The suit submissively asked.

"No. Not my orders. But more rather hers." Est aimed towards Laren.

"M-me?" Laren was surprised to hear this.

"Yes. From this day forward, you shall follow her command without fail." Est gave the suit her final orders. "Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, my mistress." The suit gave her a slight bow with one hand over it's chest. It then turned around to face Laren. "A pleasure." The suit gave her the same gesture. Laren was speechless.

"Wait, how come she gets to be the only one to order that thing around?" Dylan questioned Est's decision.

"What you give is what you get. That's just how things goes." The goddess answered him with a slightly mocking tone. "That is all for now. I bid you good luck." Slight rumbling was suddenly felt in the room causing some dust to crumble down from the ceiling above them. You'll all be needing it." With that note her body flashed brightly for a brief moment before vanishing. No trace of her was left except for the same statue as before.

"Great. What an answer. I'm sure her and Clint can get along real well." Dylan shook his head and let out a deep sigh. "Time to get out of here I guess. I'll be going on ahead." He stepped back inside the dark hallway now and was gone.

"I'm gonna go now as well." Nathan said before also leaving.

"Fine. Come on, Laren. Tell that suit to hurry it up as well." Paris asked her before leaving the two alone.

"Alright!" Laren responded. She faced back towards the suit of armour now. The suit was so massive in comparison to her that she still couldn't believe she has full control over it. "Well, umm, we should get going now." Laren told the suit.

"Yes." The suit bowed and walked towards the dark exit. Laren followed slowly behind.

* * *

Back on over to the main hall, Chris was just silently awaiting the two teams to return with their final work. Soon enough, Dylan came out first from his team's side with no one else following behind. He wasn't at all surprised to see him out here first.

"Hey, Chris. Have you been waiting here all this time?" Dylan asked.

"No. I spent most of my time at a five star establishment drinking martinis while Skell kept a close eye on you guys from outside." The host plainly answered. The gamer started to laugh but quickly stopped when he noticed Chris was being serious.

"Wait. You were being serious?" Dylan looked embarrassed now. Moments later the sound of hard metal boots echoed out from the dusk team's entrance. A few seconds later Lucette stepped out with the new armoured Clint following behind. Both of them soon noticed Dylan and Chris with the latter two unaware about Clint.

"H-hey guys!" Lucette sheepishly waved at them. Clint didn't say anything.

"Where are the others? I can understand why Dylan is here first but you? Don't tell me you betrayed them now." Chris looked skeptic of her.

"Wh-what? N-no! I would never do that!" The princess defended herself. She felt Clint starring daggers at her but just brushed it off for now. "They're fine. They are just cleaning up is all." She gave them an unconvincing smile. Chris though, he just gave her a suspicious look.

"Alright." The host gave her a slight nod. He then looked towards the blue suit of armour and gave it a quick once-over. "So tell me, how were you guys able to do it?" Chris questioned her.

"Well, umm, you see...uhh..." Lucette thought hard on what to say. Her train of thought was soon interrupted when the sound of another pair of metal boots echoed out from Dylan's team's tunnel. Soon enough, the rest of the dawn team came walking out with the red suit of armour behind them.

"Hey guys!" Laren excitedly waved at them. Nathan and Paris just casually walked towards them.

"You seem peppier than usual." Chris noted with a disgusted look. He then examined the red suit of armour right behind her. "And it seems you guys are succesful as well." He added. "Hmm, and here I am hoping that only one team to be succesful." He shook his head in a dissapointment. "Oh well, I time to perform a series of tests to see who's is better." Chris declared.

"What? Why? Our whole team is here except for hers!" Paris complained as she pointed towards Lucette. "Shouldn't that be enough for us to be declared the winner?" She argued.

"I only care about the suits. As long as its here it doesn't matter if only one person came back with it." The host answered her back plainly. "And besides, Leonard walked out on you guys so its not like your team is complete either." He reminded her.

"Hmph. Fine." Paris begrudgingly agreed.

"Alright then. Let's begin." The host smirked and flicked his fingers. Pillars of flames started to gush out from underneath both suits of armour causing panic amongst the contestants.

"Ah! Put it out! Put it out! Put it out!" Lucette freaked out for the hem of her skit got caught on fire. Nathan, who was standing close by, quickly drew out his katana and sliced off the burning end of Lucette's skirt. "Phew...Thanks!" She looked quite relieved now.

"What do you think you're doing? You trying to kill us or something!?" Paris confronted Chris about it.

"Yeah! A little warning next time!" Dylan angrily added.

"Eh. Like I said, I only care about the suits." Chris lightly snickered. "Anyways, I'm just doing a little resistance test is all. While I still had control over them I made sure that they'll be immune to any elemental effects. By doing this, I can see for myself how well protected the 'soul' in these two are." He explained to them. Chris flicked his fingers once more causing the flames to intensify. After a short while, both pillars slowly died down to reveal the end result. Both suits looked to be glowing bright red due to the intense amount of heat exerted on both of them.

"Now. For the final touch." He flicked his fingers again causing water to suddenly gush down from above. Thick amounts of steam quickly filled the tomb. As the steam drifted away, only the blue suit, Clint, was left standing and looked to be completely unaffected by intense battering both had received and still stood strong. The red suit, however, lost all it's luster and got slightly deformed with burnt blotches all over. It was bent over as well looking as though it was exhausted.

"What the? How is that possible?" Dylan went wide eyed for he couldn't believe in the result.

"Hehe...perks of being under my control." Lucette alter whispered smugly from her ring.

"You did that?" Lucette whispered back.

"Yup! Otherwise he would've suffered the same faith." Lucette alter proudly answered back.

"Isn't this technically cheating?" Lucette whispered again looking quite worried now.

"Eh. As long as no one knows it doesn't really matter. Now, pipe down before you get caught!" The former scolded her now. The latter just gulped and hid her hand behind her back.

"Well, its clear to me now on who won this test." Chris smirked. "For the first test, the dusk team earns a point." He declared. "Now, for the second test. The quality test!" He announced.

"A quality test? Are trying to make us lose on purpose or something!?" Paris complained. Chris though just wagged a finger at her with a smug look.

"I'm not talking about the exterior here. I'm talking about the soul's quality. This test is to prove whether the soul looks stable or not." The host further elaborated. "Now...open up them chest pieces so that we can begin! Let's start with the dusk team since they passed the first test." He motioned for Lucette to get started.

"Oh, umm, alright." Lucette walked towards Clint and examined the chest piece. She looked confused for she didn't know where to start.

"On my shoulders. Underneath the paddings." Clint silently instructed her. Lucette nodded and began working on removing the front half of his armour.

"Eep!" She shrieked lightly as the plate fell on the ground.

"Okay. Move aside now." Chris waved her off. Lucette stepped aside allowing the host to move towards Clint. "Oh my..." He was taken aback on what he saw. Inside he saw the crudely made sigil drawn in dried out blood with scorch marks spread all throughout. "This suit might look good on the outside but not in here it seems." He noted. "Well, let's see how the other team fairs." Chris now motioned for the dawn team to start. "Also, make it quick. We're running out of time here." He added.

"Dylan! Go and quickly remove it's armour!" Paris ordered him.

"Alright. Alright. No need to get all hussy now." Dylan looked mildly irritated with her. He approached the red suit and was about to start but stopped when he realized the suit was too tall for him to see over its shoulder. "Damn. He's too tall for me to see over!" He complained.

"Please. Allow me to do it." The red suit said in a gentle manner in response. This caught Chris's sudden attention. Reaching for its shoulders, the suit managed to undo the bindings and remove the large bulging chest piece. A bright, blue light escaped from inside, revealing small orb floating gently inside. Its radiant glow and brilliant gleam quickly caught Chris's full attention.

"Now that is what I'm looking for!" He excitedly exclaimed as he gazed upon it. "Looks like the dawn team has won this round." Chris declared. The dawn team cheered at the mention.

"Aww." Lucette pouted.

"This feels rigged." Lucette alter scoffed.

"Now that the scores are tied, its time for the final test." Chris gave a dramatic pause. "The control test!" He revealed with a smug look.

"Yes!" Lucette alter yelled loudly, causing everyone to look towards Lucette.

"Feeling confident are we?" Paris glared at her with both hands on her hips.

"Hehe...S-sorry." Lucette looked nervous.

"Okay then..." Chris looked weirded out by her. "Anyways, let's proceed. I'll make it quick." With a snap of his fingers two holographic panels appeared right in-front of him. One panel being blue the other red. "Since its a tie we'll be doing this at the same time. So both teams get ready." He smirked. Quickly inputting commands on to both panels, a bright light suddenly flashed right above the suits of armour. Seconds later strings made out of light started to slowly slither down from the top, attaching themselves on to both.

"Let's begin!" He exclaimed as he tapped on both panels. The strings suddenly tightened forcing both suits of armour to stand straight and stiff as well as lifting them slightly off the ground. Both suits were visibly rattling, showing resistance to the host's attempts. With another snap of his fingers both were soon dropped and got forced down on to their knees with their heads down. Ominous silence filled the air for neither one of them made another move.

"Now...kill them all." Chris ordered with a grim smile. Both suits of armour suddenly came back to life with their heads raised. They soon got up and faced towards their respective teams with their weapons now drawn. "The pressure is on. First team to regain control wins. Good luck." Letting out a soft chuckle he quickly vanished to leave them at the mercy of both suits. Both suits slowly walked towards their previous controllers with the intent of taking them out.

"Stop!" Paris ordered but was to no avail. "I said stop dammit!" She cursed but still nothing. The red suit of armour swung its poleaxe down on her in which she was able to quickly dodge out of. The force of the attack was enough to shatter the ground in which she stood. "Damn...that was close..." She said in relief.

"C-Clint...y-you are still in there right? Please stop?" Lucette begged as she nervously stepped back away from him. No response came. "H-hey! Do something!" She whispered to her ring.

"Eh. Later. Let's give them a show first." Lucette alter responded with a devious chuckle. Lucette just took in a heavy gulp. "Oh don't give me that look. You think I'd actually let you die if I can help it?" She sounded sarcastic.

A hard metal clang suddenly echoed out from over on the dawn team's side with a loud thud coming afterwards. Dylan was soon shown to have been sent flying towards the back wall with a large dent on his abdomen.

"*cough*...Not this again..." He said while struggling to push himself up with his sword.

"Dylan watch out!" Laren called out to him.

"Huh?" He looked up in-front of him only to see the suit right in-front of him now with its poleaxe raised up high. "Oh shi-" His character disappeared before he could even finish his sentence.

"Aah!" Shrieking came from Lucette's end as she desperately tried avoiding all of Clint's thrusts and jabs at her. "Ah!" She tripped over backwards moments later as she stepped back from a side slash. Clint was now towering over her with his sword pointed down on her. "D-do something!" She begged now.

"Alright. Point me towards him." Lucette alter answered. Lucette quickly pointed her ring forward causing it flash out brightly. "Now, be a good boy and step aside." The reflection commanded. The blue suit paused there for a second, processing what just happened, before continuing to jab down on them.

"Eek!" Lucette braced herself on what's to come with hey eyes shut. Feeling nothing had happened yet she slowly opened her eyes and saw the tip of the blade just barely touching her. Looking up she noticed Clint's entire arm was being held back by bindings made of light wrapped around him coming from her ring.

"Run!...I can't hold this for long!" Lucette alter urged her to go. Without saying anything, Lucette quickly got up and ran. The reflection let loose of her hold on Clint making him jab the ground instead and causing the blade to get stuck. "Quickly! Behind that pillar!" She ordered. Lucette did as she was told and went behind the nearby pillar.

"W-what was that!? I thought you said you had it?" Lucette exclaimed in shock.

"That damn host must've overwritten my control!" Lucette alter said irritably. "Looks like I'll have to set it back manually myself." She sighed.

"But that means you'll be exposing yourself! I can't have that from happening yet!" The princess looked anxious for her plan.

"The others are too pre-occupied to notice so just follow my lead." The reflection strongly said with a hint of confidence in her tone. Lucette though, not so much.

Back on over to where Clint stood he had finally pulled his sword free from the ground and started to slowly creep up on the pillar Lucette had ran to. With his sword arm raised he was about to cut down the pillar in one swing and was about to when something had suddenly swept him of his feet and crashing down on to the ground. He was forced down even more with a hard stomp on to his chest. Clint looked up to see Lucette standing over him.

"Hmph. Not so tough are you now?" Lucette alter triumphantly said, while trying to pretend to be the real one. She was looking down on him with the top end of her staff pointed right at him. The reflection continued on to aggressively stomp down on his chest repeatedly. Clint tried to retaliate back by slashing with his sword but couldn't for the real Lucette had pinned his arm down.

"Hurry!" She urged her reflection now for she was struggling to keep hold of Clint's arm.

"Alright. Way to ruin my fun." Lucette alter sighed. Placing her free hand on top of his metal chest, her palm pulsed out a bright flash of light before slowly removing it. His entire body soon glowed bright, encasing him in a bright veil. Clint now laid motionless on the ground. "There. That should do it." She said while taking a few steps back. Lucette did the same and got right back up.

"Did it work?" She anxiously asked.

"Of course it did!" The reflection replied proudly. "Watch." She gestured for Clint to stand but nothing happened. "What?" Looking surprised, she gestured for it to move once more but still nothing. "Somethings wrong here." She said cautiously. Lucette looked worried now for this was the first she saw her acting like this.

After a few seconds had passed the veil that encased Clint had suddenly shattered, signaling that he had broken free from the reflection's grasp once more. He soon got back up and lunged his blade at them but Lucette alter managed to tackle both of them out of his way.

"Damn. Something is preventing me from regaining control!" She hissed. She kept a hard glare on the blue suit for it was waiting for them to make a move.

"W-what do we do now?" Lucette panicked.

"Get as far away from here as you can. I'll see if I can still fix this." Lucette alter replied.

"B-but-"

"I said GO!" She assertively said. Without making any other arguments, the latter ran. Clint made an attempt to pursue her but the former got in his way with staff pointed right at him. "Oh no you don't. I'm still not yet done with you!" She said defiantly.

"Aah!" Nathan yelled for the red suit had landed an upward swing causing blood to splash all over coming from his chest for he was sent flying backwards. He landed flatly on the ground, barely holding on to life. His soon flickered out seconds later. Paris and Laren just looked on in shock from the side. With him now gone, the suit now switched over to both girls, dragging its bloodied weapon along the ground.

"Stay here!" Paris ordered as she quickly rushed towards the suit with her rapier off to her right side. Her movement started to hasten up for she went in for a swift forward thrust. The red suit of armour though was still able to react on time and just simply side stepped out of the way. Not being dissuaded she immediately followed it up with a diagonal upward swing but got easily parried downwards, trapping her blade arm in place and leaving her wide open in awkward position. With her guard now down, the latter flicked its weapon upwards in attempt to hit her with the back-blade. The dancer though was just barely able to avoid it by dropping her weapon and diving towards her left.

"Ah!" Paris winced in pain the moment she hit ground, leaving her to slide across in pain. Her sudden drastic move had caused her to break her left arm. Powering through the pain she felt, she forced herself to get right back up and face towards her opponent. She held on to her left arm tightly while slowly backing away from the red suit of armour, dauntingly moving towards her. The dancer had let out a slight gasp the moment she had unknowingly backed herself towards a nearby pillar. Paris now faced the suit up close, towering over her. She made one last effort to run away but the suit managed to grab her by the neck and forced her back onto the pillar, slightly raising her off the ground. All colour from her face was slowly draining as she struggled to catch her breath.

"La...ren..." The dancer reached out to her only remaining teammate. With nothing left for her disposal, Laren ran towards them and made an attempt to pull the suit away from her

"No! Let her go!" She cried out while trying to pull the arm off. The suit won't budge with its grip only slowly getting tighter. Paris only managed to let out coarse gargles as she tried desperately to hold on. "Please! Let her go!" Laren started crying now while still tugging on the arm. This time however things were different. The suit's arm suddenly twitched causing to let go of its grip on Paris, dropping her on the ground as a result.

"Paris!" Laren exclaimed as she knelt down beside her, placing her on to her arms. The dancer just let out a soft moan as she laid their fainted. Her attention was suddenly shifted towards the suit for rattling came towards it. At first she got startled for they were completely helpless but soon noticed something odd was going on. The suit was holding down its arm as if it was trying to resist something while at the same time slowly backing off away from them. It soon fell down on to its knees, shaking. The soul inside was noticeably pulsing out for the glow was escaping through the gaps in its body.

"Must...not...Aaah.." The suit forced itself to speak once more. "Aaaah!" It screamed once more, causing the soul inside to glow even brighter and pulsing out. Laren took notice of this and realized what was happening. She stood up strong and immediately started barking out orders.

"S-stand down!" She ordered. The red suit started to get all conflicted for the soul inside was fighting back.

"Aaah!" The suit started to yell while slowly backing off with both hands grasping on to its helmet. It soon backed itself on a nearby pillar. After a short while the soul inside glowed immensely before dying out. The soon then fell front first onto the ground making a metallic crunch as it did. Nothing else came afterwards for the suit just lied there motionless.

With the whole ordeal now over Laren dropped down on to her knees. Her rapid breathing was the only thing left she could hear for everything that just happened was all too much. She leaned her back towards the pillar and was about ready to collapse. A distant crash caught her attention though accompanied by some muffled voices but she was too tired to try and make out what it was or meant.

Back on over to the other team, Clint was placed down on his back with the chest plate having been ripped off from its hinges. Both Lucettes were standing over him from both sides. The reflection though looked to have been badly injured for cuts were present all over her body. She seemed to be holding on to a pair of chains of some kind for it was glowing in a sapphire hue.

"So what now? He doesn't seem to be moving?" Lucette worriedly asked.

"And time!" Chris's voice suddenly blared out, before the reflection could speak. His body soon appeared on the center platform with a bright flash of light.

"Quickly! Head on over there first and keep them distracted. I'll try to see if I can get him moving again." R. Lucette instructed for her to do. Without saying another word, Lucette nodded and made her way over towards them. "Alright. Let's see if this works again."

"Chris? What's going on?" Laren curiously asked for she had approached the host first.

"The test is over. Why else would I be here?" The host replied in snarky manner.

"The test ended!? Who won?" Laren now started to look a bit panicked.

"Definitely not you, sweetheart." She heard Lucette alter say from beside her. Looking towards her, the young princess only had a look of complete embarrassment with her face all read because her ring was the one that said that.

"H-huh?" She starred at it wide eyed.

"Umm, what did you just say?" Laren looked surprised at her.

"N-n-nothing! Y-you must be m-mistaken is all!" Lucette stammered out of embarrassment. "A-anyways. Which one of us won?" She asked Chris in order to change the topic.

"Well, both teams, or just you two more rather, managed to cut me from my connection which in itself is quite impressive considering that you two are the weakest links in your team." Chris stated bluntly to both of them. Both girls didn't know how to respond to that. "However. There is still one little problem. None of them are moving. You may have gotten rid of my control and that's it." He pointed out to them. "So I'll just have to take that in as tie meaning a tie breaker is in order." He announced.

"Hey! Say something!" The reflection urged her to speak in a whispered tone from her ring.

"Wait, so you managed to fix it?" Lucette whispered back.

"Yes! Now go! Otherwise I'll do it myself!" Lucette alter snapped at her.

"R-right, umm, hey Chris. Actually I, uhh, umm, do have control over Cli-I mean, the suit." Lucette anxiously said towards Chris. "It just, uhh, slipped my mind to show it to you is all." She gave him a nervous smile.

"Really now?" The host just gave her a knowing look. This made Lucette even more anxious. "Alright. Show it to me then." He said with a more calmer look. Lucette felt she breath easier now. "However!" This caused her to flinch. "If you end up failing and wasting my time I'll declare you as the loser. No pressure." Chris smirked. Taking in a heavy gulp, Lucette turned to face the still unconcious Clint.

"What now?" She whispered softly.

"Point me towards him!" Her ring answered back in the same manner. Reluctantly raising her arm forward, she aimed her ring towards Clint. The gem on her ring soon emitted a faint glow, causing the same affect on the suit as well. Silence filled the room as they all awaited for an outcome. A minute had passed and yet still nothing.

"A-anytime now haha..." Lucette laughed nervously for nothing was happening. Chris though already grew impatient with his arms crossed and foot constantly tapping.

"This is getting us nowhere. I'm sorry but-" The host cut himself when he noticed a bright flash came from inside Clint's chest. Moments he slowly sat up with an arm providing some support. He shook his head for a bit before standing up straight and making his way towards them.

"Ugh...what happened? Why does my head feel so...fuzzy?" Clint groaned. He looked around and noticed that the tomb was a complete mess, as if a battle just took place. He soon noticed his chest piece was ripped off along with the other suit laying flat across from them. "Wait...did I...do all this?" Rather than answering him, Lucette looked at him with pleading eyes and suddenly wrapped her arms around his neck, startling him. "Umm...what?"

"Oh thank god it worked! I don't want to be placed on the spot like that again!" She cried.

"See...told ya I got it...haha..." Her ring said although sounded as if she was heavily out of breath.

"Well that was rather unexpected.." Chris blinked. "Anyways..." He snapped his fingers causing his panel to appear. "That concludes the challenge. The dusk team has claimed today's victory. Congratulations." He nodded towards them. "Unless the dawn team has something else up their sleeve." He raised a brow towards Laren with a smug look. The remaining dawn team member gave the crimson red suit one last look before shaking her head no with a sad look on her face. "Alright then. I'll see you all outside." With a couple commands on his panel the contestants were all soon transported out of the virtual world with Chris following afterwards.

* * *

Back in the real world all of the contestants, minus Leonard, had all gathered in the center of the challenge room, awaiting for their teammates to finally step out of their pods. Moments later the pods containing them opened up, releasing the contained pressure inside. Clint however upon exiting still felt nauseous fell sideward only to be stopped by the frame of his pod.

"Ugh...why does my head feel even worse?" He moaned as he tried to regain some of his composure. He still had his teeth gritted for it was unbearable

"I warned you about the effects and yet you still wouldn't listen." Skell sighed with his arms folded as he watched from the front stage.

"Hey, it makes for a dramatic show." Chris chuckled lightly while seated on his swivel chair. He watched as Clint got helped in rejoining his team with a concerned Phoebe under his arm. "Sleep it off, Clint. The dizziness is only temporary. It'll be gone the next morning." The host assured him. "Hopefully that is." He said slyly under his breath. His partner just rolled his eyes at him and shook his head.

"Isn't it about time we end things off already?" He reminded Chris. "I'm pretty sure the dawn team is going to need a lot of time to prepare for tonight." Skell smirked at them.

"Fine. Needed to prepare a few things for tomorrow anyways." Chris said in a rather uncaring tone. "Like I said earlier, the losing team will be facing double elimination. Good luck to you all, dawn team. You're all going to need it." He chuckled lightly. Leaning back on his seat now, he placed an elbow on it's arm and rested his head on his knuckle along with both legs crossed. "You may all leave." He gestured for them to leave with a sweeping hand gesture. The contestants all started to head out with the winning team looking quite relieved for the day was now done. The losing team however left with looks of disappointment knowing they'll be facing elimination later tonight.

"Clint one moment before you go. I, or we rather, need to talk to you about something quite important." The host called out to him suddenly, stopping as well Phoebe in the process. They both turned around only to be met with Chris' steely look. The doll faced girl couldn't help but feel frightened for her teammate's sake.

"No need to worry, Phoebe. Nothing bad is going to happen to him. You may go on ahead." The co-host reassured her in a gentle tone. "C'mon, Clint. This won't take long."

Taking in a deep breath, Clint carefully removed his arm from Phoebe and gave both hosts a slight nod. "Don't worry yourself too much about it." He said in the same calm demeanor he had always held before shakily walking towards both hosts.

"A-alright. I-I'll just be in the food tent." Phoebe meekly responded before exiting. The double glass doors soon closed behind her.

"Now. For the matter at hand..." Chris smirked at him. "Would you like to keep your new class?"

(Confessional)

Phoebe: G-given how Chris stared at him m-makes me f-feel very uneasy about w-whats going to happen to him. I-I just hope bad is going to happen.

Clint: Hmm...pressing matter, especially one this late into the game. On one hand I'll be able to surprise everyone on the battlefield but on the other hand I'll be forced to relearn how to fight. He gave me until the start of the next challenge to give him an answer. I just hope whatever I choose I'll still be able to perform my best.

(End confessional)

* * *

(Cabin 6: Paris and Blake's. One hour before elimination)

It was already late evening with everyone preparing for tonight's elimination ceremony happening momentarily. Walking back towards their cabin was Blake who just came back from the food tent looking quite satisfied. As he neared his cabin he soon noticed the lights were on.

"Hmm...could've sworn I left the lights off? Probably just Paris." Thinking nothing of it, the prankster walked up the steps leading towards their door. Reaching his hand towards the door he soon stopped as he heard someone else talking from inside. "Huh?" Carefully opening the door he saw Laren sitting across the table from Paris.

"Oh! Evening, Blake!" Laren greeted him with a cheery smile. Paris was just starring daggers at him for intruding in on them.

"Uhh...hi?. So...am I interrupting something here?" Blake asked the two of them.

"You think?" Paris said sounding a bit irritated.

"Come now, Paris. Don't be like that towards him. He probably didn't expect us to be in here at this time." Laren said in defense of him. "Right, Blake?"

"Y-yeah! And besides, I wasn't like that when you walked on me the other day with Lucette." Blake now argued. The dancer just let out a defeated sigh and turned back around to face her teammate.

"Fine. Just mind your own business alright?" Paris sounded a bit calmer now.

"Alright. Its not like I'll gain anything from bothering you guys." Blake agreed and soon lied down on his bed. With things now settled, Paris and Laren resumed their conversation.

"Anyways, like I said before, we should focus our votes against Leonard rather than split it. Given our situation one vote is enough to send someone packing." Paris explained. "We both know already who's going to get dragged down tonight along with him. We just need to ensure that the tides don't suddenly turn on us."

"Yeah..." Laren responded with a sad look. "Its quite sad really since his strength would have been useful." She reasoned.

"Doesn't really matter. If he doesn't want to cooperate whatever powers he has will be near useless." Paris argued. "Which is the reason why we should get rid of him now that we have the chance. If we can't trust him then there is no point in keeping him."

"I guess..." Laren responded, still quite hesitant with her decision. "I still find it depressing to drop two of our allies for tonight." She said with a sad look.

"Hey, look at the bright side, without both of them running around we can finally work together properly thus ensuring higher morale for our team." Paris reassured her. "How does that sound?"

"Yeah...I guess you're right." Laren looked to have brightened up a bit. "Speaking about that though, I haven't seen Nathan after the challenge had ended. Shouldn't he be here discussing things with us as well?" She suddenly asked.

"Last I saw he was headed back towards the challenge hall." The dancer recalled. "Must be letting out some steam I guess?" She shrugged.

"What if Dylan or Leonard get to him? Wouldn't that make things difficult for us?" Laren gave her a worried look.

"I doubt it. He's too smart for that." Paris shook her head in disagreement. "He seems to trust Ginger and she's on our side. So I don't think he'll actively try to go against us." She pointed out.

"I see. I guess I can trust you on that." Laren's mood lightened up a bit.

"See? Told you there would be nothing to be worried about." Paris said with a slight grin. She then leaned back against her chair with a satisfied look. "Now that's over with, what else do you want to do with the remaining time?" She casually asked.

"I don't know. Maybe talk about other stuff I guess?" Laren suggested, looking quite unsure.

"Alright. What do you want to talk about?" The former leaned forward now, both elbows planted on to the table and fingers intertwined.

"Well..."

(Confessional)

Paris: Finally...I can get rid of both of them! They've been such a pain to keep around with both of them constantly arguing. Makes me wonder on how those two survived during the first half of the team phase. Although I do am worried about the final challenge. I did say there is nothing to be worried about to Laren but that's just to keep her morale up. If we plan on making it to the end then we're going to need all the confidence we can get.

Laren: Paris said there's nothing to be worried about but I'm still worrying about the final challenge. Its three of us against six of them. I'm not quite sure how we'll pull it off. Although I'm still going to be positive about it! If Paris is confident in us then I guess I should be confident as well!

Blake: Ugh...what is it with girls and not wanting to stop talking? I can't even focus on getting a quick shut eye before the eliminations happen! I know I technically barged in on them but its also my room! I still have a say in these things.

(End confessional)

* * *

(Virtual world: Maze outskirts. Fifteen minutes before ceremony)

Deep darkness crept in the virtual woods for not even the moon's light can penetrate through the thick leaves over the high hanging trees. Silence fell upon the darkness for not even the smallest of critters were making a sound. An eerie place for anyone or anything to hide in.

Clang the sound of two metal objects colliding with each other echoed out from the deep abyss of night breaking the silence. The sleeping beasts soon awoke causing wings to flap out and shrubberies rustling. The sound of metal clashing against each other continued on for an evident duel was taking place within the deep darkness. Two silhouettes with their blades locked were seen to be dueling.

"Heh...you sure are full of surprises." Remarked one of the duelists. The clashing stopped for a second before rustling started coupled with quick, light foot steps. "You're not getting away that easily!" Announced the same duelist before giving chase.

After a short while the clashing continued causing lots of disturbance within the dark forest. The sound of wood getting chopped, leaves being rustled, and steel banging against one another made the fight sound like an intense scene.

"Hah!" Roared the assailant as if performing a powerful attack followed by a loud thump. The sound of a tree getting chopped along with leaves falling down made it clear the attack had missed its intended mark. "No! My sword!" The attacker let out grunts while trying to pry their weapon free.

"I believe this is the part where I win." The other duelist finally spoke up in a calm manner as they approached from behind. The former just let out a soft sigh and stopped in trying to pull their weapon free.

"Alright. I give." They conceded. "Help me remove my sword out of this tree first though." With a nod, the second figure walked up close towards the tree and brought out their blade. With a swift cut from underneath they were able to break the wood setting the weapon free. It fell straight to ground making a soft thud as it hit the ground. "Thanks! Now lets get out of here."

After a short while both fighters had made it safely out of the dark forest revealing the two to be Nathan and Dylan. The cool night breeze blew gently across the open night field with the full moon providing enough ambient light.

"Man...you kept beating me every time! Damn..." Dylan gave himself a disappointed look. "You sure did improve ever since that fight we had in that library." He noted.

"Uh..yeah...thanks..." Nathan replied with a sheepish smile. "Analyzing games is sort of my thing so I figured doing it here would help me in combat." He explained. "Although putting it into practice is another story..."

"Well, from what I've seen you've got it down in spades! You sure you're not some pro player or something?" Dylan teased.

"W-what? N-no...not of the sort. I'm just a regular guy with nothing much to do." Nathan protested. "I don't even have any decent equipment back home since my family can't afford anything much." He sadly admitted. "So I just read up and learn about my favorite games so that I know what I'm doing in the event I end up saving enough cash to buy them." He added. "That's the reason why I'm here really..."

"Oh..." Hearing his story struck a chord with Dylan causing him to feel sad for him. "I see..." The gamer didn't know how to respond. After a few seconds of silence an idea soon sprung. "Hey...remember that offer for a secret alliance I made a while back? So how about it?" He offered.

"Umm...I'm not sure about that..." The latter gave him an uncertain look. "Like I said before, I already have my ties set. I don't want to break them by doing this." Nathan reminded him.

"C'mon! Give it some thought at least." The former further pushed with his offer. "Given our team's state we'll be needing all the strength we could get if we want to stand a chance for the final challenge tomorrow. If we don't do something right now I'm for sure leaving with that damn Leonard! So please...give it some consideration." Dylan started to beg. "If not for my sake then think about yours."

"I..." The choice was to heavy to make causing Nathan to take a brief pause. His thoughts was soon interrupted when the intercom started to blare out.

"Attention, everyone. The ceremony is about to begin. Golden dawn elves please be here this instant to cast in your votes. That is all." Chris' voice echoed through the intercom. A neon portal soon appeared in-front of the two.

"Well Nathan?" Dylan gave him a pleading look.

"T-tell me first you have in mind and I'll think about it..." Nathan gave him an uncertain response.

"What!? But...ugh...Fine! Its Laren! She gave up her powers in hopes of winning but wasn't enough turning her into a liability." Dylan quickly answered. "Think about it. Alright?" He said before quickly rushing towards the portal leaving Nathan alone to his thoughts. After a short while he gave himself a quick nod before leaving as well.

(Confessional)

Dylan: Man...after hearing that from him I feel sort of guilty for using him for my own personal gain. Hopefully it turns out in my favor for both his and my sake.

(End Confessional)

* * *

All the remaining contestants have gathered around the bonfire for tonight's ceremony. The air felt a bit more tense for tonight two contestants won't be making the cut. Both host stood in-front of the losing team with an evil smirk planted on the main host. The co-host raised a silver platter near shoulder height with one hand. Three elf-head shaped cookies lay on top, showing that only three shall remain.

"Ain't this quite ironic? The gold team isn't so golden after all." Chris chuckled lightly to himself. A mix of both dismay and cringe was seen on the contestants faces as they watched him laugh on his own.

"Ugh...Can we just get a move on already? I want to get this damn night over with!" Leonard growled at him.

"That excited to know if you've been voted out huh? Alright. Lets get this show on the road?" The host smirked gave them all a sinister smirk. "Let's get these first two out of the way. Paris. Nathan. Both of you are safe tonight for not receiving a single vote." He announced. Both let off relieved looks while Dylan and Laren remained tensed. Leonard though looked like he didn't even care.

Skell tossed both of them their cookies. The former was able to catch hers that almost flew over her head while the latter didn't manage to catch his. Instead, Kazuo was able to quickly grab it mid-air for he was seated on the stump right next to him and was now currently standing right beside him. Nathan just gave him a confused look, wondering as to what sort of plan he has this time.

"Hey, Chris. Does this count in him getting eliminated if he someone else caught it?" Kazuo asked with a near innocent looking smile. Nathan suddenly felt alarmed after hearing this.

"No. Now sit back down otherwise I'll eliminate you on the spot." Chris bluntly responded.

"Aww. At least I got a cookie." Kazuo walked back towards his tree stump with a disappointed look while munching on the cookie. Everyone was left speechless.

"Okay. Weirdness aside, lets put our serious faces back on and get this over with." The host cleared out his throat and took in a deep breath to regain both his momentum and composure. "Dylan, Leonard, and Laren. The three of you received votes placing you all in this predicament. Given tonight's rulings only one of you will make it out. Do I make myself clear?" He asked them. Neither one of them made a sound nor gave any type of response but looked as though they understood him well enough.

"Alright then. The one who received the least votes making them safe for tonight is...

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...Dylan. Congratulations." Chris nodded towards the gamer. Dylan jumped up in joy after hearing his name getting announced. His other teammates though, wasn't to keen on the results.

"Yes! Woo! I'm still in the game baby!" He started exclaiming. "Looks like your little revenge plan failed! Haha!" The gamer started to mock Leonard. The gang leader just had his teeth gritted and fist clenched.

"Wh-what? H-how? P-Paris? You told me everything was going to be fine!" Laren gave her a desperate look for she was shocked in hearing she got eliminated.

"I don't know! I was sure of it as well!" Paris started frantically looking around as if searching for an answer. She soon spotted Nathan looking down on his feet as if trying to avoid everyone's gazes. "You! You voted her off didn't you?" She pointed a finger towards him accusatively. Nathan didn't say anything and kept his eyes straight on the ground. "Well? Say something!"

"It was for the good of the team..." He muttered quietly under his breath.

"What did you say?" The dancer said, not being able to catch what Nathan had said. The silent boy didn't repeat what he just said and kept on looking down. "Answer me!" Paris started to demand.

"Hey! Lay off him will ya? He obviously made the right choice." Dylan taunted her with a wide, victorious smirk. "Its not his fault he saw me as a better investment." He boasted. This caused Paris to snap making her walk up towards him in a huff.

"You...I don't know how you were able to convince him to be on your side but I swear this will be the LAST time you'll be messing with my plans! Got that?" She said sounding very hostile towards him. "Same thing goes towards you, Nathan. You'll regret going against me." Paris added, feeling scornful towards him.

"How are you so sure about that? We don't mind throwing the next challenge just to vote you off. Right, Nathan?" Dylan threatened, pulling in Nathan in the conflict as well. Nathan didn't say anything and just looked away.

"Oh don't worry about that. I don't plan on losing the final challenge so I suggest you better worry about your own hide instead." Paris snapped back at him before stomping away from the scene.

"Well, good luck with that." Dylan laughed.

"Well...that took quite the dramatic turn." Chris commented on the event that just transpired. "You have anything to add to this?" He asked his co-host.

"Nope. I'm just surprised it didn't end in another tie." Skell responded. "I swear...these guys have knack for this." He complained.

"Yeah. Its as if fate is having a hard time in choosing who the rightful winner is." Chris joked. He then gave the camera a quick, knowing glance before returning his focus on the eliminated contestants. "Anyways...Leonard. Laren. Any last words?" He asked them.

"If I ever make it out of this, I'm heading straight for you, Dylan. So you better watch your back." Leonard swore to himself. Dylan remained unflinching.

"Paris...sorry for not making it out of this with you." Laren said with a sad look. "Same goes for you, Alice."

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever." Alice responded with a straight face. Her eyes however were looking off to the side.

"Lovely. Now, go follow Skell here to enter your final trial." Chris motioned for his co-host to finally escort them.

"Alright. Let's get a move we don't have all night." Skell gestured for them to follow him back towards the challenge hall. Both eliminated contestants followed him inside before finally disappearing behind the automatic doors. With them now gone only the remaining contestants were left seated around the fire pit.

"Alright. The rest of you can go and scram now or something." Chris shooed them away. All of them stood up from their seats and dispersed elsewhere into the night. With the main host of the show now finally alone the camera started to slowly zoom in on him. He closed his eyes and took in a deep breath as he prepared himself for his outro.

"Well, there you have it our dear viewers! An episode in where our contestants dabbled into the arts that would normally be seen as taboo elsewhere!" The host boldly exclaimed after opening his eyes. "The golden dawn elves sure did take a heavy hit now that only half their team remain!" Chris gave off a light, sadistic chuckle. "If you can even call them that." He said with a light grin while his eyes stared off to the side. He paused for a moment to completely face the camera.

"Will the dusk team claim another win for tomorrow's final challenge?" Chris dramatically stretched out his left arm to the side. His head facing the same direction. "Will the dawn team make a comeback of epic proportions?" He did the same actions towards the right. "But most importantly...who'll be crowned the final loser for the first half of the show?" He smirked at the camera with both arms now outstretched. "Find out next time on Total...Drama...Dungeon Hunters!"

* * *

(Votes)

Paris: my vote goes towards Leonard. If he's not going to coordinate then might as well drop him. Its as easy as that.

Laren: I'm voting for Leonard. I trust in Paris' judgement but can't help but feel worried about not contacting Nathan about this.

Leonard: Dylan. Fuck you that's what.

Dylan: If it wasn't for double eliminations I would've voted up Leonard now questions asked. But since it is I need to put my personal vendetta aside and take out Laren. I just hope Nathan does the same.

Nathan: As much as it pains me to say this but Dylan is right. If I want to make it out of here this team is going to need all the strength it could get. So my vote goes to Laren. Sorry

* * *

Places:

18th: Estwynn Paratus. The Mech and Hero Enthusiast. Role: Fighter

17th: Derek Wright. The Dangerous Outcast. Role: Fighter

16th: Kali Dulal. The Folklore/Mythology Enthusiast. Role: Duelist

15th: Tristan Kell. The Mechanic. Role: Backrow

14th: Gelsey. The Smol Girl. Role: Support

13th: Janet Jordan. The Loner. Role: Tank

12th: Leonard "Jag" Jagging. The Power-Hungry Brute. Role: Tank

11th: Laren Brea. The Ball of Sunshine. Role: Support

* * *

 **Author's note: Damn...its been a while since I last made a post. Nearly half a year has passed since I posted the last chapter it seems. Anyways, to make a long story short life finally caught up to me and collage happened. Meaning most of my spare time now is spent on doing my other hobbies and sidelines thus limiting my writing time. On the plus side though I somewhat gained my momentum for writing back but no promises on when the next post will be. I apologize for the inconsistent writing on this one, since the first half of this was made over the course of summer while the later half was made during Christmas so I had entirely different mindsets.**

 **Explanations now aside its time for me to...explain why I dropped Laren and Leonard...hmm...I really need to expand my vocabulary...Anyways. First up is Leonard. My main gimmick for everyone here, not just him, is to exploit there fears and/or negative side of them in some way, shape, or form. When I got Leonard and saw his fear, the fear of failure, I immediately capitalized on it up until his elimination. This in turn made room for interesting interactions and thus making Leonard the way he is right now. Originally his plan to take out Dylan was supposed to be a success as his final send off but given how I had to re-adjust the placements just like how I explained last time caused for this ending instead. So yeah, sorry for all those who liked the guy to see him finally scoring a success in the end. And yes, this was always intended to be a double elim just explained differently.**

 **And Lastly, Laren. To be honest she was intended to be in the merge but since her team was lacking by this point there was no use in keeping her around considering the main anchor for her team to remain intact has gone on ahead. So she was the scapegoat used for Dylan to make it far. So yeah...again, sorry for those who would have liked seeing her in the merge. It just wasn't possible with the changes.**

 **And that is all. No question for today since I don't want to spoil anyone on the main gimmick of the final challenge. Although I would give a hint with this quote:**

 **"My Demon gods have burned away. My throne is destroyed. My grand plan for the incineration of humanity dies with me. But, I will at least deny you this final victory."**

 **And that's that. For those who can guess what final challenge will be about then good for you. 'Till the next time**


End file.
